Apollo and Klavier Discover the Secrets of the Universe
by justanothrgirl
Summary: "Can I tell you a secret, Herr Forehead?" "Can I stop you?" "You don't like knowing my secrets." "Sometimes your secrets scare me." Klavier laughed. "I wasn't really kissing her. In my head, I was kissing you." Apollo shrugged. "You got to get yourself a new head, Klav." He looked a little sad. "Yeah. Guess so."
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Okay, so if any of you have ever read Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, this is an AU that uses Apollo and Klavi instead of Ari and Dante. If you haven't read it, I highly suggest you read it - it's a fantastic book and it is so well written! Obviously, some things will be changed since I had to change their backstories to match a little better with Apollo and Klavier, but some of the dialogue (like the one in the summary) will be similar or the same, though the context for it will probably be different.**

 **Anywho, happy reading! I love the book and so I'm having a blast re-writing it with those dorks Klavi and Apollo. ^.^**

Apollo Justice wasn't a fan of summer. I mean, sure, it was great to have an entire three months out of school. All his classmates raved about days by the pool or day trips out to the oceanfront, eating ice cream and driving in cars and blasting the latest pop hit through the speakers.

Apollo just sort of sat there and pretended like he fit in with that sort of thing; he pretended that reading law books and comic books at all hours of the day and then riding his bike to the countryside to watch the stars by himself wasn't what he meant when he said that he was excited for summer. He wished that he could live in the same world as them. A world where he didn't feel like he was struggling to swim while everyone else floated on their backs alongside him.

However, he found himself, a week after summer vacation started, sitting by the poolside at the local community center, trying to read the Calvin and Hobbes book that his friend had given him many moons ago. The sun was beaming down extra hard that day, and he had barely settled down into the pool chair when a wet hand clamped down on his book, the water dripping onto the pages.

He looked up into the eyes of one Trucy Wright, who was pouted at him with one hand on her hip. "Trucy, you're getting my book wet," he said, mimicking her pout and pulling his book away.

"Polly. The pool is for swimming! Not reading!"

Apollo looked around. "There's like three other people reading."

She huffed. "You're hopeless, Polly," she said, lifting the book out of his hands and closing it.

Trucy Wright. She was (technically) his sister. He hadn't been living with his current foster family for long, but Trucy, at the mere age of 8 (seven years his junior), she'd already taken a liking to him. Apparently, Mr. Wright, his foster father, had adopted Trucy as his own a few years ago. Though a lot of time hadn't passed, he did feel an odd sense of comfort at their small home.

It was then that he noticed that Trucy's skin had started to turn slightly pink. "Trucy, did you put on sunscreen?"

She looked thoughtful for a second. "Hummm…"

His face fell. "Trucy, I asked you before we left if you put on sunscreen. Mr. Wright is going to be really upset with me if you come home with a sunburn," he said.

Trucy blew air. "Daddy won't get mad at you, Polly." She stroked her chin thoughtfully, then gasped. Right. New home. Mr. Wright didn't seem anything like the past home tha he as at. But he could never be too careful. "And I'm sure it's fiiinnne."

Apollo reached down next to his chair and handed her the bottle of sunscreen. With a loud, dramatic sigh, she took it and ran off. "Wait, did you want me to- Ah, nevermind," he said as he spotted her catching up to one of her friends and holding the bottle out to her.

The pool water did look nice, and it was getting extremely hot. With a stretch, he got up and set his book down on the chair. He walked over to the edge of the pool, watching each group laugh and splash water and swim around. Sometimes, he felt like such an outsider. It wasn't for any particular reason, but maybe he hadn't learned how to live yet. He was only 15, after all, and what 15 year old knew how to live? He wished he could be that carefree. But his mind swirled about Clay Terran, who was his best friend, Mr. Wright and Trucy, college, his future career, everything and nothing at all. He was stuck in that in between phase of adulting and being a kid.

"Yeah, man, she was so smokin' hot. We're going bowling tomorrow night." Apollo turned and saw a lifeguard that looked like he'd stepped right off of Men's Fitness or something. He was talking with another buff, tan dude as they walked over to the lifeguard standing where an equally tan woman was sitting up with blonde hair and sunglasses. It was almost like they'd all come from the same stereotypical storybook.

Apollo squatted down, now fully aware that his chair had been situated on the deep end, so he was now standing by the deepest end of the pool. He dipped a toe in carefully, literally testing the waters. People were already on that end, swimming like they could be pros (or maybe he was just so bad at it that anyone who could swim was a pro to him).

"I can teach you how to swim, you know." A silky voice said from behind him.

Apollo turned around and stood, now face-to-face (okay, face-to-mouth, really) with someone who looked like he should've joined the three lifeguards. The boy had the kind (and slightly smug) face that popular people usually had. But the popular people who didn't necessarily care for the attention, but by default it was offered to them because of their good looks. He had long blonde hair that was twisted into a loose braid, and glimmering sunglasses sitting on top of his head.

And why was he offering to teach him how to swim, anyway? It seemed pretty odd, to Apollo. Had he really made it so obvious that he didn't know how to swim? Did Apollo just look like he had no friends and so the boy had sauntered over out of pity? After all, who didn't have friends at the pool?

"I can teach you how to swim, ja?" He said again.

And what was up with that "ja" at the end? Was he actually German, or was he one of those people who'd traveled abroad for three months and suddenly they were "cultured?" Apollo paused his thoughts for a moment, realizing that he'd already started judging the guy when all he'd done was offer to teach him how to swim. This was probably why he didn't have many friends.

"Oh, um…"

Before Apollo could fully answer, the boy sneezed loudly. "Ach, sorry. Allergies."

"What are you allergic to?"

He looked up, playfully pensive for a moment. "The air."

Apollo couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm Klavier," the boy said. It sounded musical.

"Apollo."

"Apollo," Klavier repeated, like he was choking back a laugh. His eyes lit up in the process. "Sorry," he said. "It's just funny."

"My name is funny?"

"Nein," he said. "It's just…Klavier is piano in German. And Apollo is the god of music." Then Klavier started to laugh again. Apollo almost said something god-awful like "so I should master you, then?" but thankfully he wasn't so lacking in social interaction, and instead he laughed along with Klavier.

"Among other things," Apollo pointed out.

"Ja. Among other things."

"So are you German?"

"No, I'm cultured." Apollo stared at him. Had he read his mind. Klavier simply smiled in amusement, like he'd read Apollo from a mile a away and had already predicted all of his cynical thoughts. Apollo wasn't sure if he liked that or not. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Apollo…?"

"Justice. Apollo Justice."

"That sounds like a fake name."

Apollo huffed. "It's not. It's my real name."

"Really?" Klavier prodded.

"Yes," Apollo emphasized, annoyed.

Klavier laughed again, seemingly happy to have gotten under his skin so easily. "I'm only teasing." Something told Apollo that there was a lot of that amongst Klavier in his friends. Which, by the way, this guy probably had plenty of. He seemed like the kind of easygoing guy that Apollo wanted to be on some days. Mostly on summer days when everyone was at the pool.

"Oh. Well, I wouldn't know. We've only met," Apollo said flatly.

The boy wasn't fazed. "That we have. It's nice to meet you, Apollo Justice." Apollo liked the way that he said it. It was filled with genuine sincerity. Like it wasn't just _nice_ to meet him, but like it was nice to meet _him - little, unimportant Apollo -_ specifically.

"Okay," Apollo said. "You can teach me how to swim." He'd said it like it was a personal privilege to Klavier to teach him, but Klavier didn't comment on it. He simply smiled that carefree smile, took off his sunglasses, and dove into the deep end of the pool, splashing an unhappy Apollo in the process.

It turns out that Klavier was actually a good teacher. He swam like it was something that he'd done all his life, although in reality he said he'd only learned a few months ago. _Great,_ Apollo thought, _and now he was one of those people who could take something up and become an expert in a short amount of time._ He knew all of the techniques and the right postures and how to balance one's body in the water. He talked about it like it was something as essential as learning how to walk. He made it seem infinitely more important in that moment than Apollo ever thought that something as mundane as swimming could be. He was only 16 years old, and talked about swimming like it was the most beautiful and skilled form of art. Who exactly was this guy?

After Apollo had barely learned how to tread water, Klavier said that he would teach him how to swim that summer, and didn't really give Apollo a choice in the matter. Not that he would've denied it. Klavier was interesting. They hadn't even talked about much more than swimming techniques that day, but at the same time, there was something in his voice that made Apollo curious. It was hard to pinpoint it exactly. It was like…the moment when you're reading a book and realize that you want to continue it and see where it goes next. It's unexplainable, but it's there.

In an instant, Klavier become one more mystery in a universe full of mysteries.


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry guys! I flubbed the ages up. Apollo is actually 15, and Klavier is 16. Trucy's 8. Not too much of a difference, but I felt like those ages fit better with the dialogue and where I wanted the story to go in the long run. I had it fixed on AO3 but forgot to do it before uploading the chapter onto here. It's fixed on here now. Athena and Ema will be making an appearance in the next chapter. I've already got an idea of how i want them to be included, and I'm super excited for that, haha.**

 **Buuuut until then, here's chapter 2, and happy reading!**

Apollo learned a lot about Klavier in a short amount of time. He had an older brother, who he now lived with since his parents passed away when he was younger. Klavier seemed to speak highly of him, but it was clear that there was more to it than that. He learned that he liked music. Not only did he like music, it was almost like he lived and breathed music. There was something about Klavier. He wasn't just funny, but he was focused, and fierce. He referred to his love of music as a "hobby," and told Apollo that he wanted to be a lawyer one day. So they at least had that much in common (though not much else). He also was a bit of a perfectionist, which explained how he had become such an expert in swimming. Once he got interested in something, he wanted it to be perfect. He wanted to master it. And he had the ability to do so.

To be honest, Apollo felt so little compared to him. He didn't have much to show for himself, except that he could quote Calvin and Hobbes comics and tell him about constitutional law (which was unnecessary, since he already knew all about it). Apollo wasn't a perfectionist, but he was stubborn in his own right. He was way too serious sometimes and his lack of self-confidence probably showed more than he cared to admit. But Klavier had a way of making it seem like Apollo was…well, interesting.

"You think too much, Apollo," Klavier said one day after another swimming lesson, popping Apollo out of one of his trains of thought. Again. "You're going to get wrinkles that way."

"I think, therefore I am," Apollo said, hoping that it sounded as cool as he wanted it to.

"Am with wrinkles. Right on your forehead," Klavier said.

"That's my thinking face. It means I exist."

Klavier laughed, and it probably could've filled the entire air. "Okay, Herr Forehead."

Apollo snapped his head to him. "Don't call me that."

Klavier shrugged and turned to him with a smile, that gleam in his eye yet again. "You have something against nicknames?"

"No, of course not, but-"

"Well, I like it," Klavier said, settling down into a pool chair with a satisfied look. Apollo followed suit in a pool chair next to him. "Well, Herr Forehead?" He opened one eye and peeked at Apollo to gauge his reaction.

"Doesn't Herr mean Mister?" Apollo asked.

"Mr. Forehead."

"It sounds like a comedian's name."

"So be a comedian."

"I'm not really funny though."

Klavier turned his head fully towards him this time. "I think you're…" He thought for a moment, then resumed where he was. He reached down and somehow his sunglasses were in his hand and then over his eyes. "I think you think too much."

"That's not exactly a bad thing, you know."

"What are you thinking about?" Klavier asked. He didn't turn to look at Apollo, but his curiosity brought his voice up a bit.

"Life. The universe. What I want for my birthday. You."

He shifted slightly. "Me?"

"Yeah," Apollo admitted.

Klavier looked like he wanted to say something. He opened his mouth slightly, then closed it again. Then opened. "Huh."

"Don't you want to know why?"

"I'm not sure. If you tell me, then the mystery is gone," Klavier said teasingly. " It's a great feeling, isn't it? The moment before someone tells you a secret or tells you what they're thinking. It's like an entire other universe opens up, if only for that split second, that is built entire out of your own imagination. Right now, in this moment I can imagine a million things that you could be thinking about in regards to me.."

Only Klavier could say things like that and make it sound cool. Apollo looked at the 16-year old. Who taught him how to think like this? And how to make the most simple things seem so complex underneath the surface?

"All fantastic thoughts about me, of course," Klavier added knowingly, causing Apollo to roll his eyes. And then he said things like that.

Apollo scoffed. "Yeah, right. I was wondering why you're teaching me to swim," he said. There was no reason for him to, after all. He was just a kid who had put his foot slightly into the water, and suddenly this boy with glimmering shades and a carefree smile came up to him and was teaching him to swim.

"Hmm…?" Klavier said.

"I mean…Don't you have better things to do?"

He replied instantly. "This _is_ a better thing to do."

"Than what?" Apollo sat up straighter and looked at Klavier, who still sat with his face towards the sky. He couldn't tell whether his eyes were opened or closed because of the sunglasses.

Klavier didn't respond for a noticeably long moment. It was then that Apollo realized that there was a lot more to Klavier Gavin than met the eye. "I like teaching you," Klavier finally said. Apollo added that to the list of interesting things about Klavier. He took notice of the word 'you' at the end. He didn't just like teaching. He liked teaching Apollo, who was like a fish out of water when it came to actually swimming _in_ the water. Klavier did things like teach strangers to swim because he genuinely enjoyed it.

The next day, Apollo didn't go to the pool. He'd just picked up a new science-fiction novel by his favorite author (blame Clay for getting him into that genre) that he'd been waiting for for a couple of months. It was a sequel to a series that they'd actually read the first book of together. And Apollo felt like he owed it to Clay to continue reading.

In those moments, he felt like his best friend was still with him. It was a world that they could explore together. At any moment, he half-expected his cell phone to ring and hear Clay on the other end talking about studying the stars or how cool the aliens were.

He was absorbed in his book for most of the day, to the point where he didn't hear Mr. Wright or Trucy enter until Trucy loudly announced his name.

"Polly!" Trucy said as Mr. Wright shut the door. She jumped onto the couch and Apollo slightly scooted.

"Hey, Apollo," Mr. Wright greeted warmly. "Not at the pool?"

Apollo shook his head, holding up his book with wordless explanation.

Trucy bounced up and down. "We should watch a movie! Or play a game!"

"Not now, Trucy," Apollo started. "I want to finish the next two chapters."

"Aww, come on, that's so booooring!" Trucy persisted. "Can't you-"

"Truce," Mr. Wright interrupted. "Have you cleaned your room?"

Her face fell. "Aw, Daddy, can't I do it tomorrow?"

"Think of it this way, Truce. You can watch movies and play games all you want after you're finished cleaning," Mr. Wright said convincingly.

Her eyes sparkled. "All I want?" She hopped off the couch. "Okay, Daddy, I'll go clean now!" She decided, and she ran off again. She did that a lot, Apollo noticed.

"Er, thanks," Apollo said.

Mr. Wright smiled. "Don't mention it, Apollo. So, listen, I've been thinking…"

Uh oh. Was he going to say that this arrangement wasn't working out? Was he going to send Apollo to another foster family? Had he not been welcoming enough to Trucy?

"Slow the gears, Apollo," Mr. Wright laughed. Yeesh, was he _that_ easy to read? "I was wondering if you wanted to work at my law firm for the summer. Well, technically it's Ms. Fey's, but I know that you're interested in studying law."

Apollo gaped at him. He sat up immediately, letting his book fall onto his lap as he looked at Mr. Wright in disbelief. "M-Me?" _Little, unimportant Apollo?_

"Who else?" Mr. Wright said with a smile. "I'm not sure how much you're interested in criminal law or criminal defense, but it would be great to get your hands dirty. What do you say?"

"What do I say?" Apollo repeated. He'd looked up Mr. Wright when he first found out that he was going to be staying with them. He worked for a pretty great law firm. He'd taken on some pretty high-level cases, and, to be honest, he wouldn't mind working for said firm once he finished school and actually became a lawyer. "Uh, yeah, sure. That-That sounds great!" He jumped up. "I have to tell-" His voice caught. _Clay._ No. He couldn't tell him things anymore.

"Klavier?" Mr. Wright guessed.

"What?" Apollo said.

"Oh. I just figured you'd want to tell him, since you guys have been hanging out a lot recently."

 _Why would Klavier be the first person that I want to tell?_ Apollo thought, not liking the odd look that Mr. Wright was giving him.

"Yeah. I guess I could tell him," Apollo said a bit unsurely.

Mr. Wright nodded. "Oh, and one more thing. I said 'work', but it's not gonna be paid," he said plainly as he walked into the kitchen area.

Apollo felt his face fall. "So it's a volunteer position."

"Don't worry, you'll definitely be getting your work in."

 _Great. Just what I wanted. To be worked to the bone and not get paid for it._ Apollo bit his tongue and said nothing as Mr. Wright opened the fridge. He couldn't exactly complain. After all, he was getting experience. Or some such nonsense.

Before either of them could say any more, they were interrupted by the sound of the house phone ringing. Mr. Wright walked over to grab it from where it was mounted on the wall and answered it.

"Hello?" Mr. Wright paused for a moment, then turned to Apollo with a smile. "It's for you."

What? Who on earth would be calling _him_? Apollo walked over and took the phone from his hands and placed it against his ear, walking back to the couch. "Hello…?"

"Herr Forehead!"

"…I'm hanging up," Apollo said plainly. Klavier's laughter filled Apollo's ear, because they both knew that he wouldn't Still, Apollo was hoping that silly nickname would die out soon enough. "How did you get this number?"

"Turns out Phoenix Wright is in the phone book."

"Why do you have a phone book?"

"Kristoph," Klavier said, as if that was enough of an explanation. "And it turns out it came in handy, after all, ja, Forehead?" Well, at least he dropped the Herr, for now.

"I can just give you my cell phone number," Apollo said, and he rattled off the number for his cell and Klavier told him his. Then it dawned on him. "Why are you calling? Did something happen?" What could be so urgent that would require Klavier to dig through the phone book to find Mr. Wright's number and cal it just to talk to Apollo?

"You weren't at the pool today," Klavier said. Again, like it explained everything.

"Um, okay?"

"It was boring without you," Klavier added. Apollo scoffed. He highly doubted that. A popular guy like Klavier certainly wasn't bored without Apollo to hang out with. Apollo had been there at the pool enough times to see the way that girls fawned over him and guys were constantly joking with him and coming up to him to chat. Nope. No way. Not little, unimportant Apollo. "You don't believe me?" He added after some silence.

"Forgive me if I find that a little hard to believe."

Klavier laughed again, like he was holding some secret that Apollo wasn't privy to. A lot of those moments were starting to happen. "Okay, I'll forgive you," he said. "Do you want to come over tomorrow?"

"To your house?"

"No, to the cardboard box by the overpass. Yes, to my house."

Apollo shrugged, then remembered that he was talking to him over the phone. "I guess."

"You sound thrilled," Klavier joked, then added, in mock hurt: "You wound me, Herr Forehead." He pictured Klavier sitting with his legs hanging off the couch, with that same amused expression on his face.

"Would you stop calling me that?" Apollo said, slightly annoyed by it the second time around.

"I'll consider it."

"You won't."

"Then why ask to begin with?" Klavier said with another laugh. "Also, what are you doing in two hours?"

"Probably-"

"Excellent! Some friends and I are going bowling. You should come, ja?"

Apollo looked at the book that he'd put on the couch. Not to mention, he had no idea what Klavier's friends were like. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to handle that. Especially if they were anything like the ones who came up to him at the pool. "I'm not sure. I've got some things to do," he said.

"Oh," Klavier said, and for a moment, Apollo could've sworn he heard disappointment in his voice.

"Yeah…" Apollo trailed off. Silence on the other end. Was he really that disappointed? "Sorry," was all Apollo could offer.

"No worries," Klavier said after another moment of silence. He had slipped back into his easygoing tone. "Well, it should be a great time. It's at the bowling alley by People Park," he added.

"I'm not very good at bowling, anyway."

Klavier sighed, but it sounded almost whimsical. "Must I teach you everything, Herr Forehead?" Apollo slightly smiled on the other end. "Well, the offer still stands, if your plans open up. Auf Wiedersehen!"

"Must you inflect German into everything?" Apollo said, but Klavier had already hung up. He lowered the phone. He'd be lying if he said that he wasn't _interested_ in going. And Klavier had certainly gone a bit out of his way to invite him. But he wasn't interested in being around all those people. For some reason, he pictured Klavier hanging out with thirty other people. And there was nothing worse than going to an outing where the only person you knew was the person that everyone wanted to talk to. Inevitably, you ended up standing by yourself as everyone else chatted with their other friends and you waited until the one friend you know finished chatting the crowd up.

"You should go, Polly."

Apollo looked over the couch and saw Trucy standing by the kitchen. The other handheld house phone was in her hand.

"Trucy! Did you listen to our conversation?"

"It sounds like Klavier really wants you to go," she added, ignoring him.

"Trucy Wright," Mr. Wright said. He held out his hand for the phone, and Trucy placed it into his hand with an innocent expression on her face. "Don't give me that look," he said, though he seemed like he wasn't angry at her. At least not as angry as Apollo was. "Apologize to him. You know you shouldn't listen to people's private conversations like that."

"But Daddy-"

"Trucy," Mr. Wright warned. "Or I'm taking away your magic kit for a week."

Trucy gasped like the world was about to end. Her eyes widened and she looked back and forth between Mr. Wright and Apollo. Mr. Wright raised an eyebrow expectantly. "I'm sorry, Polly," Trucy relented. "You just always look so sad. And whenever I see you at the pool with Klavier, you don't look as sad."

"I-I'm not sad," Apollo managed to stutter out. His face softened. "I'm fine, Trucy."

"But are you happy?"

What was it with people being so much deeper than they should be for their age? Apollo's mouth opened, but no words came out. What did he know about happiness? He was only a kid. And so was she - a perceptive one at that.

"Alright, Truce," Mr. Wright said warily. "Why don't we let Apollo get back to his reading, huh?"

She stared hard at Apollo. "Okay, Daddy." But before she did, she rushed over to him and wrapped her arms around him. "I like having you here, Polly. I hope that makes you happy."

Apollo said something that sounded vaguely like a reply, then Mr. Wright ushered back into cleaning her room. He'd said something to Apollo afterwards about how he wanted Apollo to be comfortable and happy there, an if there was anything he could do, to let him know.

Trucy's words echoed in Apollo's mind for the next two hours. So much so, that, somehow, on that day, he found himself standing outside the bowling alley near People Park, staring at the door as though entering it would lead to some great unknown.

He remembered Klavier's words from one of their earlier conversations. _The moment before…_ _It's like an entire other universe opens up._

Somebody bumped him as they walked with their friends. "What's that guy doing?" The girl muttered to her friends as they kept walking.

Apollo sighed. He was way too dramatic sometimes. After all, what could possibly be so universe-opening about hanging out with Klavier Gavin?


	3. Chapter 3

**So I'm not really happy with this chapter. I don't like it that much. Although that might be because it's lacking the amount of Klapollo that I wanted for this chapter, lol. I just don't like the way it played out - but the dialogue just kind of flew out as naturally as possible, so I left it in. I wanted to introduce Athena. She's not gonna be a super huge character, but she is going to play a role, and his friends will also be making more appearances way later in the story, so it was mostly for her character and personality to kind of come through more than anything as well as the other minor characters. Just think of it as an intro chapter to the minor characters. BUT I did include some Klapollo at the end for you wonderful people :)**

 **I promise that the next chapter will be better and will have waaaay more Klapollo and a bit of Kristoph as well (Yikes)! Stick with me X) haha. But anywho, happy reading! Any comments are much appreciated.**

* * *

Apollo walked into the bowling alley, and it was like his worst fears were realized. Klavier hadn't arrived yet. So now he was the awkward guy looking for his friends. There was a group of people that Apollo kind of recognized, about the same age as him, and he suspected that that might be the group of friends that Klavier mentioned. But instead of walking over to them, he sat at a table not too far away, and pulled out his phone, grateful that he'd downloaded some detective game on his phone before leaving.

He glanced up at them in between finding the hidden objects in the game. He wished Clay was with him. Clay had this aura about him that made him instantly likeable. He could get along with most anyone and ease his way into a conversation with no trouble at all. And somehow, he knew how to include anyone else in the conversation too. Apollo sighed.

"Hey! You're Klavier's friend, right?"

Apollo looked up and saw two girls standing in front of them. The girl who spoke had fiery orange hair and an excited look on her face, while the other girl was brunette and looked about as bored as watching paint drying on a wall.

Klavier's friend? Oh right. I guess somewhere down the road, he'd become Klavier's friend. He'd never really acknowledged it before.

"Um…Yeah, I guess."

"We've seen you by the pool," the orange-haired girl explained. Ah, right. Apollo vaguely remembered her as one of the girls who came up to talk to him at one point. "I'm Athena. And this is Ema," she said, pointing to the grumpy-looking brunette.

"Apollo," he said.

"It's so dark in here," Ema said, folding her arms across her chest. She wasn't wrong there. The bowling alley looked like it'd be decorated by a neon, techno fanatic. They always turned the lights down at night, but it was clear that it was designed with teenagers in mind. "Why are we even here?"

"Because Simon owes me a re-match!" Athena said, her fist colliding with her free hand in a dramatic fashion. "I've been practicing. He's not going to win this time."

"Ugh. Fine," Ema relented. "But that fop is going to be here."

"Fop?" Apollo said, unable to stop himself from jumping in.

Athena laughed. "That's what she calls Klavier."

"He's just so dramatic," Ema said. "No offense," she added, turning to Apollo.

"Why would I be offended?"

"Aren't you one of his boys?" Ema asked, disdain clearly evident in her voice.

"Um…"

"Oh, Ema, give him a break," Athena said. "It was nice of him to invite us."

"Simon invited us," Ema corrected.

"Well, Klavier was standing there too, so it still counts," Athena pointed out.

"His sunglasses were glimmering in my eyes," Ema folded her arms across her chest. _Is that even the right use of the word?_

Athena leaned in playfully towards Apollo. She lifted a hand up next to her mouth as if she were telling him a secret. "I think she likes him," Athena chuckled.

"I do not," Ema declared instantly.

Athena laughed a little harder, standing up straight. "I'm just saying. It's like in the movies where the girl hates the guy but is secretly in love with him."

"You watch too many romantic comedies," Ema deadpanned.

Athena just smiled. "Anywho. Apollo. Are you new in town? I haven't seen you around before, aside from at the pool this summer," she asked kindly.

"Ah, yeah, I am," Apollo said. "I just moved here." _AKA just got taken in by a foster family in a whole new town._

"Nice," Athena said. "Well, I think you'll like it here. There's plenty to do. So Klavier's teaching you to swim, huh?" Apollo tilted his head at her. How…? Athena laughed. "It was pretty obvious with the way you were flailing about in the pool."

"I wasn't flailing…"

"You were flailing," Ema said pointedly. "And why are letting that fop teach you? You could have far better teachers than him."

"Herr Forehead?"

Apollo heard Klavier's voice and saw him approaching from the group of friends that Apollo saw earlier. Klavier smiled brightly upon seeing him. He came to a stop in beside Athena and Ema, placing his hands in his jacket pockets.

Apollo didn't bother to correct him this time.

"You made it," he said, his smile getting slightly bigger. "I knew you just couldn't resist coming to see me."

Apollo rolled his eyes. "More like, I finished up the things I had to do," he said. That was partially true. He did finish those two chapters he wanted to finish reading.

He laughed his whimsical laugh again - the one that bordered on the edge of sounding like music to his ears. "Ach. You just continue to wound me, Herr Forehead."

"Add that to the list of things I find hard to believe."

"Seems like quite a long list."

Apollo shrugged. "It's probably shorter than you think."

"You'll have to tell me one day."

"It's not really that interesting."

"Forgive me if I find that hard to believe," Klavier echoed with a teasing smile.

"Um, if you two are done with…whatever the hell that was-" Ema cut in, darting her eyes between the two of them _._ "Maybe we could actually get to the _bowling_."

Klavier turned to them like he'd just noticed that they were there. He turned to greet them. "Athena, Ema. I'm glad you came."

Athena smiled almost as wide as Klavier. "Of course we did. Besides, I deserve a rematch from last time."

He laughed. "Ah, yes. Simon has been talking about that all day after we saw you at the pool."

"Wait, they were at the pool with you?" Apollo cut in.

"Yeah, we were," Athena said. "Why?"

 _He said it was boring…_ Apollo paused. They all gave him an expectant look as they waited for him to elaborate. "Uh. No reason. Just curious."

They made their way over to the group. There were three guys and two girls all sitting at a large table by the lane on the right end. Apollo had guessed correctly that they were all a part of his group.

"It's about time," one of the boys said. He had on a zip up hoodie that vaguely resembled a shark and jet black hair. "What the hell were you doing, man?"

Klavier ignored his friend's comment. "I'm here now. Let's play, ja?" But before he did so, he shoved Apollo forward. Fittingly, it felt like being thrown into a shark tank. He glared at Klavier, who gave him an innocent smile and a short laugh. "This is Apollo."

"Ah, this is the one you're teaching how to swim, correct?" A boy with black and white hair and a toothpick in his mouth said. He was leaned back in his seat, his elbows on the tops of other chairs. "I mean, who doesn't know how to swim at this age, though?" Shark-Boy started to laugh.

 _Actually, plenty of people don't know how to swim._ At least, that's what Apollo wanted to say. He imagined himself shooting back in a cool, suave way that would impress them and show them just how confident he was (or, at least, how confident he was pretending to be).

But their eyes were on him, and they all waited for him to say something. "Uh…hi. I'm Apollo," he sputtered out. _Stupid. Klavier already said that._

"Uh, yeah, dude, Klav just told us that," Shark-Boy said with a snicker.

Apollo looked for something - anything - to say. "I like your jacket," he said to the shark-boy. "The-The zipper looks like a megalodan shark's tooth. That's cool…" Apollo drifted off as he saw nearly everybody giving him a blank stare. _Oh no. Kill me now._

"Really?" Athena piped up after a moment of painfully awkward silence. "That's so cool. What kind of a shark is that?" She asked.

He was incredibly thankful for Athena's presence. "It's…" She looked at him expectantly, with a warm smile on her face. She didn't look particularly interested, not in the way that Klavier would look and listen, as though little, unimportant Apollo was about to say the most interesting thing in the world, but she was kind enough to ask so that he didn't feel so awkward. She was asking out of politeness, but she seemed genuine about it, so he would take it if it were being offered. He glanced at Klavier, and sure enough, he was listening like Apollo was about to answer life's greatest question.

"It's extinct now, but it, uh, lived during the Cenozoic era, and, uh well technically the scientific name is carch-…"

"Ceno-w _hat_?" Shark-boy scoffed, interrupting Apollo before he could finish. "Klav, where did you find this kid?"

Klavier laughed that whimsical laugh of his. "Chill, Daryan. It wouldn't kill you to pick up a book once in a while," he said. Daryan huffed, folding his arms across his chest and turning his head slightly away. "And it's carcharodon, ja, Forehead?" Klavier added with a gleam in his eye. _And now the guy knew random shark facts?_

Apollo learned who all of them were, slowly. Daryan was the shark-boy, and didn't seem to like Apollo very much for some reason. Simon had been the one with the white and black hair. He seemed largely indifferent to Apollo. Honestly, he didn't seem to care either way whether Apollo was there or not. The other boy, Hugh, looked even more serious than Apollo, and he spent most of the time talking to Juniper, one of the girls there who, for some reason, would avoid Apollo's gaze too intentionally. The other girl, aside from Athena and Ema, was Robin, who was about as loud as they come and had a weird tendency to spell out certain words instead of just say them upfront.

They decided to split into teams for the game. It ended up being Athena, Ema, Apollo, and Robin on one team, and Klavier, Daryan, Simon, Hugh on the other. Juniper had decided to sit it out after Daryan complained about Apollo making the teams uneven.

Apollo felt a little bad, because Robin and Athena were pretty competitive, and Apollo was just there not being good at bowling. And now an entire group of people were there to witness it. After a moment of sucking at it, Apollo had picked up his bowling ball and was getting ready for another gutter or corner hit when Athena walked over to him.

"Okay, Apollo, I'm gonna tell you my super, secret technique on how to get a strike, alright?" Athena said as the ball weighed in his hands.

"I'm doing that bad, huh?"

"Well…yeah. But that's okay. It's all in good fun."

He gaped at her. "You talking about crushing the other team and calling them 'losers' is all in good fun?"

"…I'm a little competitive," she said, putting her fingers almost together to show him.

"A little?"

Athena laughed again. "Okay, fine. I kind of want to crush them into the ground. But listen, this technique is fool-proof." She leaned in close to whisper to him what it was. He blushed slightly at how close she was to his ear. And then started to tell him about this so-called secret technique. It sounded a bit ridiculous to Apollo, but she was in the lead out of everyone, with Simon on the other team at a close second.

"Got all that?" Athena said when she was finished.

"Um. No…?"

Athena laughed. "Good luck!" She patted his shoulder. He turned to say something back, but he paused when he saw Klavier looking at them with an unreadable expression. It looked like Daryan was saying something to him, but Klavier looked totally out of it as he stared in their direction. _Uh oh. Had Klavier somehow heard Athena's secret? Would he say something about it? They hadn't even been close to the group when Athena came up and whispered into his ear. What could he possibly be looking at Athena so intently for?_ Apollo assumed that he was looking at Athena, about to say something about how she was cheating or not allowed to help him. But Klavier sat there, watching them for one more moment, then shortly after Athena walked back, he'd slipped into a laugh and started speaking to Daryan as if nothing had happened.

Huh. Weird.

Add that to the list of mysteries about Klavier Gavin.

Athena rushed back to where she was sitting with Ema and Robin. "Woo, come on, you got this Apollo!" She cheered. He could practically hear the words _you'd better_ seeping out of her thoughts.

He tried out her technique, and oddly enough, it actually worked. He didn't get a strike, but he got close enough. The rest of the game went pretty smoothly. His team actually ended up winning, mostly thanks to Athena. Afterwards, they all chatted about other things until slowly, the group started to trickle down until it was just Athena, Simon, Ema, Klavier, and Apollo left.

"Well, that was fun," Athena said.

"Right…fun," Ema said sarcastically.

"We should probably head back, though," Athena added.

"Yes. I'll give you two a ride home," Simon said to them. He turned to Klavier. "Would you like a ride as well?"

Klavier shook his head. "Nein. I like the walk."

"Very well, and you?" Simon said, looking at Apollo.

"Uh, no, I'm fine. I actually like walking, too," he admitted.

Simon looked between the two of them for a moment, then got some sort of weird smile on his face. _What's up with that?_ "Alright."

They said their goodbyes and suddenly it was just Apollo and Klavier.

"Thanks for inviting me," Apollo said after a moment. "Your friends are…interesting."

"In a good way or a bad way?"

"In an…interesting way."

Klavier laughed. "Poetic as ever, Herr Forehead. All of that thinking going on in your head and that's all you came up with?"

Apollo shrugged. They walked out and were met with the chilly nighttime air. Without thinking, Apollo started walking in the direction of Mr. Wright's house. Klavier fell into step beside him, his hands in his pockets. "You said I think too much. Never said the thoughts were anything special."

"You like the word 'interesting', don't you?" Klavier asked.

Apollo shrugged. "I don't know. I've never really thought about words that I like."

"You should think about it. You'd be surprised at what you find."

Apollo thought for a moment. "I guess...Well, I like the word 'ambiguous,'" he said to Klavier for some reason.

"Ambiguous?"

"Yeah. Maybe because it's meaning is that there isn't any clear meaning. It feels a lot like life," Apollo said. "My life is ambiguous."

"Much like the universe," Klavier said. "That should be a song," he said, mostly to himself.

They walked in comfortable silence for a bit more. Apollo glanced up at the sky. Most of the stars were obscured by the street lamps.

"What about you? What's your favorite word?" Apollo decided to ask.

Klavier thought for a moment. "Chaos."

"Chaos?"

"Does that surprise you?"

"No…I mean…Yeah. Whose favorite word is chaos? That means disorder and confusion and-"

"Ambiguity?" Klavier added with a small smile.

"Oh. I guess that's true too," Apollo admitted. "I'd prefer calm ambiguity myself though, thanks."

"Wouldn't we all?" Klavier mused.

"Do you talk to all of your friends like this?" Apollo asked. The words had come out faster and slightly harsher than they'd sounded in his head. Words were like that. Always different when they lived inside of you. He hurried to backtrack. "I mean, I-I can't exactly picture you having this conversation with, say, Daryan."

Klavier laughed. "Daryan is a good friend. He's the first person my age that I met in this town. But you are correct. I suppose you're more of a special case," he said it simply, as though it should be obvious to Apollo.

Apollo kind of liked that, though he didn't admit it. "That reminds me…why did you saying it was boring at the pool if all your friends were there?"

"Hmm?" Apollo started to notice that Klavier did that a lot whenever he wanted an extra minute to answer a question.

"Earlier. On the phone."

"Oh." Klavier paused. "I said it was boring without _you_." He said it like it was nothing.

"I'm not that interesting," Apollo protested.

Klavier thought for a moment. "Nein. You're not."

Apollo frowned. "Thanks."

Klavier laughed. "I didn't mean it like that. It's just…interesting is a word that people use when they don't know how to describe someone. It's a placeholder word for how they really feel." Apollo hated how right he was. No wonder he'd asked Apollo if he liked used that word. Apollo frowned. Now he wasn't just little and unimportant. He was unoriginal too. "There are far better words out there. You're not interesting, you're…" Apollo half-expected him to say something corny like "unique" or "different," and had already prepared a sarcastic response if that were the case.

"What?" Apollo asked, wanting him to continue.

"Well, other than impatient?" Klavier joked. Then he sighed. "You're bizarre, Apollo."

"What? What does that even mean? That's not a good thing, in case you haven't noticed."

"Have you ever seen the Mona Lisa?" Klavier said suddenly.

"Um, what?"

"The Mona Lisa. The painting."

"I know it's a painting," Apollo shot back. "And yes, I've seen it. What does that have to do with _anything_?"

Klavier tsk'd at him. He dug his hands further into his pockets and looked up at the night sky as he walked. "You know, Mona Lisa doesn't leave a lasting impression because she's sparkling and beautiful and perfect. She's small, dark, cloudy, _bizarre_ – but her eyes have this look." Klavier noticeably didn't look at Apollo - he kept his gaze towards the sky - even though Apollo was looking at Klavier intently, confusion laced over his face. He waited for Klavier to elaborate, but he didn't.

 _What was up with this guy_? Was he calling Apollo dark and cloudy? _Not that he would've been wrong._ But only Klavier could hang out with someone like Daryan and then tell him to chill, and in the next second talk about the scientific name for the megalodan, and then an hour or so later be so wax poetic. How could one person be so simple and complex at the same time?

"Did anybody ever tell you that you're not normal?' Apollo said.

Klavier tried not to laugh, but he wasn't good at controlling all the laughter that lived inside of him. "Is that something I should aspire to?"

Klavier smiled, turning his head to Apollo. For a split second, Apollo thought he could've seen the universe in his eyes if he looked close enough. Or maybe he was just imagining things. It was late, after all, and he was tired. And anyone's eyes could look magical underneath a starry sky. It was just the way that the night sky worked. It made everything a little bit more surreal. _Whenever I see you at the pool with Klavier, you don't look as sad._ Trucy's words echoed in his ear. Apollo liked that feeling. Not being sad. "Nah," Apollo finally said. "You should stay you."

* * *

 **Notes:**

 **You'll figure out why that's Klavier's favorite word later on ;)**

 **I promise that the next chapter will be better. I'll try and update with the next chapter either tomorrow or the day after :D**


	4. Chapter 4

Apollo arrived at the pool the next day, and Klavier arrived shortly after. By the time that he did, the clouds had completely covered the sky, and it looked like it was going to rain. The distant thunder could be heard in the distance.

"How about we reschedule, ja?"

So they made their way over to Klavier's house. As they were walking, it began to rain. And then it began to pour. Apollo looked at Klavier. "How much further is your house? We can make a run for it," Apollo said, holding his towel up over his head to no avail.

Klavier, on the other hand, apparently seemed to like the idea of getting pneumonia. He looked up as the rain hit his face. Who does that? He slowed his walk a bit and returned Apollo's gaze. "I won't run if you don't."

"What?" Apollo blinked. He started to speed up, then realized Klavier wasn't walking any faster.

A smile with a million secrets popped up on Klavier's face. "Can you take it?"

Apollo wanted to run. He didn't want to be in this weather. His towel was quickly getting soaked and eventually the water would bleed right through. "The common cold is a huge issue these days, you know," Apollo said. "That's why it's common." Even so, he found himself lowering his towel just a bit.

"Are you going to run?" Klavier asked. The question felt heavy, with a million different meanings behind those million secrets.

 _Why would I not? That's the most rational thing to do in this situation._ "I won't run," Apollo said, his mouth betraying what he was thinking. He wanted to speed up, but instead he slowed down until he fell back into step with the boy with the glimmering shades who stood in the rain and didn't run.

Klavier smiled.

They arrived at Klavier's house nearly soaking wet. When they walked inside, Apollo saw a man that looked like an older, more sophisticated (at least in terms of dress) carbon copy of Klavier sitting on the couch reading a book that looked thicker than the length of Apollo's entire head.

When the door shut, the man, who Apollo guessed (correctly) as Kristoph, looked up at them disapprovingly through his glasses.

"Hey, Kris," Klavier said a bit dully.

"You're tracking water into the house," Kristoph sighed.

"It was such a nice day out. We figured, why not enjoy it, ja?" Klavier said easily.

Krisoph looked at his brother disapprovingly. "You should be smarter about these things, Klavier. You can't just shoot the breeze whenever you feel like it," he replied just as easily. Kristoph's eyes flashed over to Apollo, who noticed that Kristoph's eyes were noticeably darker than Klavier's. Not at first glance, of course. They both had the same ocean blue eyes. But Kristoph…there was something unpleasant about it. Apollo couldn't figure it out, and he didn't want to get to know him well enough to find out. "You must be my dear brother's little swimming buddy." He sounded so calm, yet condescending at the same time. Apollo fought to keep his face from scrunching up in disdain.

"Ja. This is-"

"Your friend can introduce himself, Klavier," Kristoph interrupted coolly.

His eyes looked down at Apollo expectantly.

"Apollo Justice," Apollo said, standing up a little straighter.

"Ah, right," Kristoph said. "The one Mr. Wright has taken in as his own."

"I'm not his," Apollo shot back almost immediately, regretting the words as soon as they came out. Kristoph seemed pleased enough, though. "I mean…I'm not, like, his child or anything."

"Did I suggest that?"

Apollo felt uneasy. He felt a nudge on his shoulder. "Apollo and I are going upstairs," Klavier declared.

"Do dry yourself off, Klavier," Kristoph said. "I have work to do and don't have time to deal with a lake inside _my_ house." He emphasized the 'my' part of the statement noticeably loud, like it was something he loomed over his younger brother.

Klavier didn't say anything. He simply went upstairs, and Apollo followed him into his room.

He'd never seen Klavier's room before, and he wasn't sure what to expect. There was a guitar sitting in the corner of the room, and a large, flexible chair on the opposite side of his bed covered in random items. The chair was pointed towards the large TV. To the back of the room was a large bookshelf filled with a number of books that made it look like a personal library with the amount of variety that was on them. His walls were covered with decorative vinyl records and musical posters. There were clothes strewn about and loose pages of what looked like poems. Or song lyrics. What was really the difference? Klavier's world had chaos, it seemed, and he liked it that way.

"That was mein Bruder, in case it wasn't clear," Klavier said, hopping onto his bed and leaning back against the wall. He didn't seem to care that he was getting his bed wet. "Sorry. Brother." Apollo didn't tell him that he'd Googled some common German words, and instead he nodded as if the translation was necessary.

Apollo glanced over at Klavier's desk, which was just about as messy as they come. "I noticed. You didn't seem very happy."

Klavier shrugged, leaning his head back against the wall. "It is what it is."

"Are you…close with your brother?" Apollo asked.

Klavier attempted something that sounded like a laugh, though it was a little closer to a wounded animal. "I think he loves me, at least. In his own way."

"You _think_?" Apollo pressed.

"Ja. I think."

That's when Apollo saw it. The first crack in Klavier Gavin's mask. It was faint, but Apollo saw it. That split second of pain that flashed over his face. For a moment, Klavier was the one with the Mona Lisa eyes. But it was gone just as fast as it appeared, and Klavier slipped into an easy grin.

Now _that_ was interesting - Klavier had secrets.

"Soon I'll be the one with the wrinkles on my forehead, it seems," he mused, closing his eyes. His head was still leaned up against the wall.

From where Klavier was sitting, Apollo could see both him and the outside window. The sky was almost black and then it started hailing. He looked at Klavier. It was so beautiful and scary - Apollo wondered briefly about the science of storms and how sometimes it seemed that a storm wanted to break the world and how the world refused to break.

"Something the matter, Herr Forehead?"

Apollo blinked. He'd been so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't noticed that Klavier had peeked one eye open to look at Apollo.

"Oh… I didn't know you could see me," Apollo offered lamely.

"Is staring one of your pasttimes?"

"I-I wasn't staring," Apollo said. "I was…looking at you…while thinking…" S _o, staring. Good job, Apollo. Way to scare off the one friend you have right now._

Another whimsical laugh. "Alright, Forehead," he said. And then, almost too quietly. "I didn't say it was a bad thing."

 _What? What does that even mean?_

Apollo wasn't very good with this friendship thing. Boys like Apollo weren't lone wolves by choice (well, not completely), but in order to fit in almost anywhere, you had to be cool and wonderful and easy to talk to. Being yourself was never enough, no matter what circle you chose to be in. There was always a version of you that was put on with even the closest of friends, and it was always different from the version of you when you're alone. Even if it was just slightly different. But Apollo wasn't a very good con artist. And being himself was also too hard and didn't seem to yield him much results. So he was mostly invisible. And he sort of liked it that way.

And then Klavier came along.

Then a little louder. "See anything of notice?" Klavier joked.

Actually yes. Yes he did. "You smile a lot," Apollo said.

"You say these things like they're bad," Klavier laughed. "I've had a lot to smile about lately."

"Like what?"

No answer, but the smile remained. Apollo guessed that any number of things would give him reason to smile.

Once Apollo realized he wasn't getting an answer, he shifted gears. "So…what do you want to do?"

A brief pause, and then suddenly, Klavier stood. "I should probably clean my room, actually."

"What? Right now?" Apollo asked. "Is this your idea of hanging out?" Not that Apollo knew what people did when they hung out.

Klavier laughed and walked over to his bookshelf and handed him a book. "Here," he said. "You can read this while I clean my room."

"Maybe I should just, you know, leave you-" Apollo stopped. "I don't want to be in the way…"

He smiled. "Don't," he said. "Don't leave. I hate cleaning my room."

Apollo searched the room. "Maybe if you didn't have so many things."

"It's just stuff," Klavier shrugged. "If you stay, it won't be so bad."

Somehow, Apollo felt out of place-but-"Okay," Apollo said. "Uh. Should I help?"

"Nein. It's my job," he said with a kind of resignation. "My responsibility, as Kristoph would say. I kind of like the chaos though. It helps me think, oddly enough. Chaos is so disorderly that eventually it becomes simple and expected. The unpredictability of chaos starts becoming predictable," Klavier pondered. Apollo wasn't sure if he was even addressing him anymore or just philosophizing to himself. He wondered if Klavier did that often when he was alone. "Anyway, I mostly do it because he expects me to clean. It's funny, huh? The number of things we do only because we're expected to. Then again, maybe I only like the chaos because Kristoph likes order." He paused. "I wonder how much of myself is me because I wanted so badly to not be like him. I mean, I look up to him, sure, but…" Klavier drifted off. "Ach, I'm probably not making much sense."

He then looked at Apollo like it was his turn to say something. Apollo struggled to find something - _anything_ \- that would add to the conversation. When he'd finally strewn together some words to ask him if that was why his favorite word was chaos, Klavier had already moved on, gesturing again to the book. _Good going, Apollo. Way to have nothing to offer._ "Anyway, you can read that."

Apollo looked down at the book in his hands. _Songs of the South: An Anthology of Ancient Chinese Poems._

"It's the second-oldest collection of Chinese poems in existence," Klavier said. Apollo looked at him blankly. "What? Poetry won't kill you."

"Are you sure about that?" Apollo muttered. Klavier laughed.

"If it does, I'll read a poem from it at your funeral."

"Then I'd have to haunt you as a ghost."

"Forever?" Klavier asked.

"You're asking that like you _want_ me to haunt you," Apollo gaped.

Another laugh from Klavier - although slightly higher-pitched, like he'd just been caught saying something he hadn't meant for Apollo's ears to hear. "You can just throw that stuff onto the floor and have a seat," he said, gesturing to the lounge chair.

Apollo picked up some clothes and a small notebook and set it on the floor. "What's this?"

"Huh? Oh. It's a songwriting book."

"Can I see it?" Apollo said, his curiosity piqued. He'd much rather read that than old Chinese poetry.

Klavier shook his head. "I don't like to show it to anyone."

Huh. More secrets.

All afternoon, Klavier cleaned. And Apollo read the book of poems. It wasn't stupid or silly or sappy or overly intellectual - not any of the things that Apollo thought poetry would be. Some of them, Apollo understood right off the bat. But most, he didn't think he'd ever understand. Or maybe he needed to dig a little deeper to get it. Much like people. Some you could peg almost immediately. Others? Others you just didn't get, and maybe never would.

Every once in a while, when trying to understand the poems started to frustrate him, Apollo would glance up and watch as Klavier organized everything in his room. He was so systematic about it. It was complete chaos, and when he was done, everything was in place. From chaos into order.

"So," Klavier said when he was done. "What do you think?"

"Of the room or the book?"

A smile. "The book."

"I didn't understand a lot of it," he frowned, slightly frustrated.

"You don't have to understand it," Klavier said. "We're so obsessed with understanding and being able to analyze _everything_. Why not just enjoy it?"

"How can I enjoy it if I don't understand it?"

Klavier didn't say anything. Instead, he grabbed the book of poems away from Apollo and sifted through it until he found one. He jumped onto the bed and brushed his hair back. He was so perfect in his newly organized room, Apollo didn't even realize that it'd stopped raining until he saw the western sun streaming in. Klavier's face was in the light and the book in his hand as if it was meant to be there, in his hands, and _only_ in his hands. Klavier read a poem as if he'd written it. It sounded musical coming out of his mouth, almost like he was singing a song rather than reading words printed on a page.

For the rest of the afternoon, Apollo sat in the large, comfortable chair in Klavier's room and Klavier sat casually on his bed. And he read poems. Or maybe he sang them - Apollo wasn't sure.

Somehow, when Klavier read it, Apollo didn't worry about understanding them. He didn't care about what they meant. He didn't care because what mattered was that Klavier's voice felt real. And Apollo felt real.

That was it.

Apollo felt real, sitting in that room with the boy with the glimmering shades. Little, unimportant Apollo didn't feel like such an insignificant part of the universe.

Being with other people was the hardest thing in the world for Apollo now that Clay was gone (and even before then, it wasn't the easiest). But Klavier made talking and living and feeling seem like all those things were perfectly natural.

They weren't normal, though. Not in Apollo's world, at least.

He sneezed, sensing a cold coming on. All because he had walked in the rain when he should have run. Thanks to the boy in the glimmering shades.

Huh.

Then again, maybe he wasn't in his world anymore.

* * *

 **Thank you all for reading! I'm really enjoying writing this story, so I hope you all are enjoying reading it. I appreciate all of your beautiful selves! 3**


	5. Chapter 5

Apollo did indeed catch a cold that fully manifested itself a few days later. So, he wasn't able to go to the pool. He told Klavier in the morning when he woke up sneezing and with a runny nose.

About an hour after texting Klavier, he came over to Apollo's house unannounced. _Who does that?_

Apollo had been laying on the couch, and had fallen asleep with his book in his hand when he woke up slightly at the sound of the doorbell. Before he could get up, he heard Trucy running for the door. It was just the two of them, since Mr. Wright had gone to work.

Apollo was supposed to start today, but in his sickness, Mr. Wright insisted that he stay home this time.

 _Don't worry_ , he had said with a smile, _there won't be any shortage of work for you to do when you start._

Apollo was still in the process of waking himself up (there were few feelings worse than how you feel when you're waking up and sick) when he loudly heard. "Oh! You're Polly's friend!"

Apollo lifted himself off the couch, sitting up so that he could see who was at the door. There stood Klavier, with a kind smile on his face and a plastic bag of some sort.

"Klavier. I come bearing gifts," Klavier said. "Chicken noodle soup, actually."

"Did you cook that?" Apollo said nasally.

"Well…someone at Campbell's did," Klavier said cheekily.

"It was probably made by machines, then."

"Someone had to man the machines," Klavier shrugged it off with a toothy smile. "May I come in?" He asked Trucy.

Trucy stared at him with stars in her eyes. "Of course! Polly's been feeling so sick. I'm sure this will help him feel better. He's been sleeping on the couch all day. I've been taking care of him," she said proudly, shutting the door behind him as Klavier stepped inside.

She led him over to the living room. "I tried to make him some tea, but I think I messed it up," she said with a frown.

"You didn't mess it up, Truce," Apollo assured her. _Not that much, at least…._

"You made a face when you tried it, Polly," Trucy said with her hands on her hips.

"Oh. Did I?" Apollo started. "That-That was just because I'm sick. It just hurt going down my throat."

She stared at him a bit longer. "You're lying. But that's okay. I appreciate the effort," she said, the smile returning on her face. She turned to Klavier. "But now you can take care of him. I think that'd make him happy."

Apollo could've sworn he saw…a blush ( _What_?) appear on Klavier's face. He blinked a few times. The cold was making him start to imagine things.

"I'll do my best," Klavier said.

Trucy smiled. "Good. I'll be in my room," she said to Apollo. "I have to practice my magic tricks."

"Magic tricks? You'll have to show me some," Klavier told her. "And what better way to help Apollo heal than a little magic?"

She was practically beaming while Apollo fought the urge to roll his eyes. Okay, he was a little jealous of Klavier's ability to charm almost anyone. "Really? That would be awesome!" She turned to Apollo expectantly.

"Yeah, Truce, that would be really nice. You've been practicing so much, anyway," Apollo said.

"Okay!" She said. "I'll go practice some more now and then when Daddy gets home I can put on a show!" She clapped her hands excitedly and rushed off to her room without another word.

Once she did so, Klavier grinned at him, walking over to the armchair and placing the bag onto the coffee table. Wordlessly, he opened the bag and pulled out a small container of chicken noodle soup as Apollo watched him in confusion.

"Aren't you afraid of catching what I have?" Apollo asked, finally deciding to speak up.

"No."

"You're not afraid?"

"No."

"You're not afraid of anything."

"I'm afraid of a lot of things, Apollo," Klavier said. He sounded a bit wistful.

Apollo could have asked _What? What are you afraid of?_ But Apollo didn't think he would have told him.

Klavier handed him the soup with kind eyes. "Here. You should eat this."

"Um…thank you," Apollo said, sitting up on the couch a bit more. "You didn't have to do this…"

"I know," he said.

"I mean, Trucy made me tea, and Mr. Wright said he would bring back whatever I wanted for dinner…"

Klavier nodded. "They seem to care about you a lot," he noted. It was odd - his tone. He'd made it sound like it was something he'd never experienced before.

"Yeah," Apollo said. "I guess."

"You don't know how good you have it," he said. His tone was slightly incredulous, like he couldn't believe that Apollo didn't realize it. "Last time I got sick, my brother practically treated me like an inmate in solitary confinement." Another split second of pain underneath his perfect mask before it went away.

Apollo pondered that for a moment. The more he thought about it, the more Apollo wondered if maybe they really were opposites, even though Kristoph raised him for most of his life. Apollo thought back to when he'd actually met Kristoph. Now that was confusing. Klavier had such kind eyes in comparison. Why was that? How could someone's eyes be so…kind? Wasn't this the age when life started beating you down until the reality of life set in?

"I'll bring you soup, next time," Apollo told him. "I owe you."

"Okay," Klavier grinned. "But don't do it because you owe me. Do it because you want to."

"Okay. I want to."

"Good."

Apollo figured that he was confused by Klavier Gavin more than anything else. He took the soup and slurped it without words. It felt warm, and he glanced up at Klavier.

"You…don't have to stay, you know," Apollo said.

"Do you want me to leave?"

Honestly? "Not really," Apollo admitted.

A few more seconds of silence passed. "Klavier?"

"Yes?"

"Do you usually do this for your friends?"

Klavier froze, and it might've been the first time Apollo truly caught him off guard. "I-um," he stuttered. Apollo didn't figure Klavier as someone who stuttered. "Ach, you caught me," he recovered with a short laugh. "Nein. I don't."

"But you're doing it for me."

"Ja."

Apollo didn't know what to do with that piece of information. So he just kept it inside. That's what he did with everything. Kept it inside.

"What's this?"

Apollo looked and saw Klavier picking up Apollo's science-fiction book. "Oh…It's about these aliens who try to coexist with humans on Mars. But it doesn't work out," Suddenly he felt ridiculous as he explained the premise.

"Huh," Klavier said.

"Yeah. It's the second in a series. My…my best friend got me into it."

"Best friend?" Klavier lowered the book. "You've never told me about your best friend," he said curiously.

He hadn't, because Apollo was never any good with telling people how he felt. Yet, somehow, Apollo found himself saying-"Clay," Apollo started. "That's his name. He…He wanted to be an astronaut, and he got me into this series. Convinced me to read it after he'd read the first one and spoiled it before I even got through chapter 1."

"Does he not want to be an astronaut anymore?"

"What?"

"You said wanted. Past tense."

"Oh. He…He was killed."

Brief silence. Had Apollo said too much? "I'm sorry, Apollo," Klavier said. "That you had to go through that."

His voice was so gentle, Apollo wasn't sure if he felt tears because of his sickness or something else. Either way, his throat felt heavy. He certainly wasn't about to cry in front of Klavier. _What would he think?_

"Yeah," Apollo said. "He was the one who got me through all the changes in foster care. He was a good friend."

"What was he like?"

Apollo smiled faintly. "We laughed a lot. We cheered each other up. It felt like us against the world."

"Is that why you want to be a lawyer? Because of what happened to Clay?"

Klavier always asked the questions that nobody else asked. Apollo liked that, in a weird way.

He shook his head. "No…if that were the case, I'd probably want to be a prosecutor. No… We had this neighbor. She was accused of the crime. Wrongfully. And the killer almost got away. All because it all pointed to her. But she was helpless. No one would listen to her. And suddenly, the defense attorney turned the whole thing around. He believed in her," Apollo said. "I guess I just want to believe in people who don't have anyone to believe in them. So I guess it's partially about what happened to him. But mostly what happened after. Weird, I know."

Klavier looked at him for a moment, filled with a million questions, before he smiled. "You never cease to surprise me, Herr Forehead."

What? _He_ was the surprising one?

"Huh? Why? That wasn't anything special."

"Not to you. But there are people out there just wishing to meet someone exactly like you. People out there who are wishing for a lawyer just like you. To them, it's more than special," Klavier told him earnestly.

Apollo sneezed. Someone out there is just wishing to meet someone exactly like… _him_? Someone like little, unimportant Apollo? No. No way.

He'd never thought of it much, really. He'd never spoken those words aloud before. He'd kept them deep in the confines of his own mind, where they were safe from the harshness of a world that _he_ thought lived to tear down dreams.

But he told Klavier. And he liked telling Klavier.

The more he thought about it, the more he realized that his new friend was so different from Clay. With Clay, it had felt like it was the two of them against that world. They were going to stick together, best friends until the end, no matter how much their foster homes and shitty lives threatened to break them. They would help hoist each other up through every stage of their lives and build names for themselves and sit with their wives and children and tell stories of how they fought against the world and won.

That's not how it felt with Klavier. He didn't feel like he was against the world. He felt like he was _in_ the world. He felt like the world wasn't so brutal after all. That maybe a sunset is so beautiful because the world wants to give you something to smile about after a horrible day. That maybe the birds come down from the heavens and sing so loud and so beautifully to try and drown out the noise of people trying to tear down another's dreams. That maybe the world brings boys like Klavier - boys with glimmering shades - into the lives of boys like Apollo - _little, unimportant_ Apollo - to provide a Northern Star to guide him to a destination that he wasn't quite sure of. No. The world isn't perfect, Apollo was beginning to see. It isn't. But it's trying. It's doing the best it can. It was chaotic and ambiguous. But it was beautiful. And filled with secrets that Apollo would never understand, and he didn't need to.

And it seemed to Apollo that Klavier's face was map of that chaotic, ambiguous, beautiful world. A world without any darkness.

Wow, a world without darkness. How beautiful was that?

* * *

 **Apollo is oblivious to his own self and I love it. I just feel like Apollo would be the one thinking about all of this, and then choosing not to read too much into it and just thinking that that's a normal thing to feel for a friend, haha. I do love writing an oblivious Apollo xD**

 **Also bonus points if any of you watch FullMetal Alchemist and know what quote I incorporated into this chapter :D**

 **Thank you to all you beautiful people for reading 3 it definitely motivates me to keep going.**


	6. Chapter 6

**So this is the last chapter in this "arc." I actually didn't have this chap originally, but I felt like I needed one more chapter with Klav and Apollo leading into what happens next. I'm excited about the next part of this story. The next arc of this story is definitely where a lot more things start happening at a bit of a faster rate and you get to see how all the other characters fit into things, so I'm enjoying writing it so far (and I hope you guys enjoy it ^.^). But anyways, thanks to everyone whose read so far, and here is the next chapter!**

* * *

Unsurprisingly, Klavier got sick a few days after Apollo got better.

So, Apollo stayed true to his word. He stood at the kitchen on a Saturday morning, stirring a pot of home-made chicken noodle soup as Mr. Wright and Trucy sat at the table eating cereal for breakfast. He'd learned once, at one of his foster homes. One of the other kids was a fan of cooking and showed him how to make basic dishes. Soup was of course one of them.

"This is really nice of you, Apollo. I'm sure Klavier will really appreciate it," Mr. Wright said, taking a bite of his cereal.

Apollo shrugged. "It's not a big deal," Apollo downplayed.

"Don't forget the tea bags I left for you!" Trucy said. "He watched my magic show, so I gave him two," she told him pointedly.

Apollo smiled. "I'll make sure he gets them, Trucy."

"He seems like a good kid," Mr. Wright said with a smile.

Apollo wanted to tell them that he didn't know if he'd ever be able to find another real friend after Clay. Until Klavier. He wanted to tell them that he never knew that people like Klavier existed in the world, people who sang poems instead of reading them, and knew the mysteries of swimming and water, and preferred chaos over order, and taught strangers how to swim for nothing in return, and walked in the rain. He wanted to tell them that he was the first human being that ever made him want to talk about things that scared him. "He's a good kid," wasn't enough to describe Klavier Gavin. He wanted to say so many things, but he didn't have the words. He never did. So instead, he turned off the stove and nodded. "I guess so."

"You should have him come over more often!" Trucy said. "When he gets better. I want to show him some more of the magic tricks that I learned!"

"Um, yeah, I'll mention it."

"Maybe you can have him come over for dinner sometime, too," Mr. Wright added.

He looked at them suspiciously. "Why?"

"I just think it would be nice," Mr. Wright said with an all-too-innocent shrug. Though his expression was that of someone who thought that he was privy to something that Apollo hadn't figured out himself.

"I mean, I'll ask. But I'm sure he's got other things to do," Apollo said lamely.

Mr. Wright grinned. "He's got other things to do, every evening at dinnertime?"

 _Crap_. "I mean, maybe," Apollo said. "…Probably not. But…You never know…" he sputtered out.

"Alright. Well, if that busy schedule of his opens up, you let us know so we know to set the table for four instead of three."

"You have this tone…" Apollo said cautiously.

"Do I?" Mr. Wright said. This time the tone was playful. He chuckled. "I'm just glad that you're adjusting to things here. Making friends."

"Yeah. You're not so sad anymore!" Trucy added. "I'm glad that Klavier is your friend."

Apollo rubbed the back of his neck. "He's not the only reason I'm not sad, Trucy," he said. _I mean, he's a big part of it, sure, but no one needs to know that. Especially not Klavier._

"I know, I know," she said with a gleam in her eye and the same tone as Mr. Wright.

Apollo finished pouring the soup into an airtight container, and placed it into a blue lunchbag. He tossed the two chamomile tea packets in and zipped it up, then picked up the thermos filled with fresh tea that Trucy had also made for him. "I'll head out now. Not sure when I'll be back."

"Alright," Mr. Wright said. Then-"Oh, wait, Apollo. One more thing."

"Hmm?"

Mr. Wright sat back in his chair. "I'm sorry to spring this on you now, but…" He wasn't good at not smiling. "Trucy and I have discussed this, and I've thought about this for a while. But, if it's alright with you, I want to go through the process of formally adopting you."

Trucy beamed. "So you can be my real brother! And you can stay with us forever!"

Apollo blinked, not sure that he was hearing them correctly. In fact, it almost sounded like a loud ringing in his ears. "Wh-What?"

"Of course, only if you want to. I know it's not the coziest, and Trucy can be a lot sometimes-"

"Hey!"

He smiled. "Ha ha. Just kidding, Truce. But seriously, Apollo. I would love to welcome you into our family. Officially."

Apollo stood, feeling like he was parched all of a sudden. "Why me? I haven't even been here that long." A few months, and that was enough time for them to decide they wanted him to stay?

"Time has nothing to do with it," Mr. Wright said. "We like having you here. You make Trucy happy. You're a good influence on her. You've got a solid head on your shoulders. And we think you'd fit in with our crazy family. We can't offer you much, but, we'd love to have you stay," he said.

He wanted Apollo to…stay? Apollo couldn't wipe the disbelief off of his face. He'd moved from foster home to foster home his entire life, and now, suddenly, he could stay? Little, unimportant Apollo?

"I-I don't know what to say."

"Say yes!" Trucy jumped.

"Trucy…" Mr. Wright said. He turned to Apollo. "Think it over. It's up to you. We're already saying yes."

"Um…okay…er…thanks. I…uh. Yeah, I'll think it over," he said stumbling a bit on the way to the door.

"That's all I ask," Mr. Wright said.

Apollo walked out in somewhat of a daze, wandering over until he'd made it over to Klavier's house.

When he knocked on the door, with the lunchbag slung over his shoulder and thermos in his hand, Kristoph opened the door after Apollo's second attempt at knocking.

Apollo felt small as Kristoph loomed over him curiously. "Ah. Mr. Justice," he said. "Klavier is ill at the moment." He said it almost like it was a burden on himself.

"Uh, yeah, I heard," Apollo said, holding up the thermos. "I brought him some stuff…" he drifted off as Kristoph scrutinized him under his glasses.

"Did you now?" Kristoph said. If he was surprised, it barely registered in his tone.

"So… Can I come in?" Apollo said, looking moreso through Kristoph than at him.

A moment of silence passed between them. "You're the one who passed on this illness to him, aren't you?" Kristoph asked.

"Ah. I mean, I was sick when he came over, I guess…" Apollo said. "I didn't _ask_ him to come. He just did."

"So he did. He seems quite fond of you," Kristoph said curiously, his eyes narrowed slightly as if trying to figure out why. Apollo hated being scrutinized like that.

A million words passed through his mind. _Do you know that your brother isn't so fond of you? That he wants to be the opposite of you so badly? Why? Why is that?_ But he couldn't say that. So instead, he just repeated Mr. Wright. "Nah. I think he's just a good kid," Apollo said.

Kristoph stared at him a bit more, and for a moment, Apollo thought that he would tell him to leave. Instead, he opened the door wider for Apollo to walk in. Apprehensively, Apollo walked through the front door.

"He's upstairs," Kristoph said.

"Um, alright, thanks."

"You shouldn't say 'um' so much. Speak clearly," Kristoph chastised. Somehow, Apollo could imagine Klavier saying the same thing to him, except Kristoph's lacked the gentle chiding that would've been in Klavier's tone.

Apollo nodded tautly and practically ran into Klavier's room.

He found Klavier not in bed, but sitting at his lounge chair with his guitar in his hand, tuning it. There was the songwriting book on the ground in front of him. Of course he wouldn't be curled up in bed.

But when Klavier looked up, Apollo could see that his nose was slightly red, and there was a box of tissues on his windowsill. The trash can was also next to him and nearly filled to the brim with a mixture of used tissues and balled up pieces of paper.

"Herr Forehead," Klavier greeted with a smile. His voice sounded slightly hoarse. "What are you doing here?"

"Why are you not in bed?" Apollo said, getting more upset than he needed to be. "You should be resting."

"When inspiration strikes, it strikes," Klavier shrugged. "Who am I to say no when the universe prompts me to move?"

"A person who needs to get well is who," Apollo said. "Come on. You should lay down."

"Aw, don't tell me you're worried about me," Klavier couldn't help but tease. It was interrupted by a vicious coughing fit. Apollo looked at him pointedly. Klavier smiled. "What? I'm fine, see?"

"Fine. Don't get in bed," Apollo huffed out of frustration. "It's only going to prolong your sickness, you know."

"That just means you'll have to take care of me longer."

 _What_. Apollo blinked at him. Klavier started to laugh, but it got mixed up in another cough. "I'm kidding, Apollo." Still, there was something in his tone. Klavier placed his guitar back on the stand, and he moved to close the songwriting book. He shouldn't have looked, but Apollo couldn't help but casually glance down at the page it was opened to. He was only able to see the title before it disappeared from view: _The Guitar's Serenade_.

Klavier slowly moved for his bed, though he didn't lie down in it so much as just sit on top of it. Apollo sighed. That would have to do for now.

"Anyway, you didn't answer my question. What are you doing here?"

Apollo looked at him, confused. He set the lunchbag down and unzipped it. "You're sick," he said plainly. "I told you I'd bring you soup. So I did."

Surprise crossed over his face. "Oh."

"Yeah," Apollo said, handing the thermos to Klavier. "Trucy made this for you. It's hot tea. Lemon ginger. And she threw in some packets of chamomile in the bag for later. You can have the soup later too, I guess. Unless you're hungry now. But you shouldn't eat soup in bed. That could get messy. Even though you don't care about messiness, but-"

"Apollo."

Apollo stopped abruptly, realizing that he was ranting. He looked at Klavier who looked…so touched, so much so that Apollo wasn't sure if his eyes were watery because of the cold or something else.

"What? It's not a big deal," Apollo said. "I'm sure this isn't the first time someone's brought you soup when you were sick."

"Why do you think that?"

"Well, because you're…you," Apollo said.

Klavier smiled. "Just who do you think I am, Herr Forehead?"

Apollo shrugged, once again not saying all the words that lived inside of him. "A good kid. Or so I'm told." Klavier cocked his head to the side, waiting for him to explain. "Mr. Wright said that you seem like a good kid."

"I knew I liked him for a reason," Klavier joked, taking a sip of his tea. "Thank Trucy for me. This is…very kind of her."

"I will," Apollo said somewhat awkwardly.

"And Herr Forehead? You're right, this isn't the first time. My mom did. It's one of the few memories I still have of her, actually." Somehow, Klavier could say these things that would normally be a conversation-killer (or at least make the conversation take an awkwardly serious turn) and have it sound so natural.

Apollo sat at the chair by the desk. He bit the inside of his mouth. He wanted to say so much. "Sometimes I'll think back to something Clay and I did, and I'll have trouble remembering the details. Or second-guess some of them."

"That's the worst part about losing someone, ja? When the memories start to fade. When you stop remembering what they sound like," Klavier said.

Apollo looked into his blue orbs. The more he thought about it, maybe Klavier was just as lost as he was. Maybe he was just as lonely. Maybe everybody was lonely and lost. Maybe a little bit. Apollo wondered what it would be like to not know what Klavier would sound like anymore. He thought of Klavier becoming that distant of a memory. He shoved the thought out of his mind.

"What are you thinking about?" His voice brought Apollo back to reality.

"I don't know. Nothing," Apollo said. "Anyway, I just wanted to drop this stuff off." Apollo shifted in his seat. "I should go."

He made no effort to move. He half-expected Klavier to ask him to stay, but to his surprise, Klavier nodded. "Alright. If you need to go."

"I mean, I don't need to, I just…I mean…" Apollo drifted off as his gaze actually dropped to what was on Klavier's desk. Apollo furrowed his brow. On the desk was a copy of the science-fiction book that Apollo had told him about. "This…This is the book." He looked at Klavier. "How long have you had this?"

"Ah. I needed some new reading materials. Picked it up the other day when I was passing through the bookstore," Klavier said casually.

"But it's the second in a series."

"Ja," Klavier gestured to his bookshelf. "The first one in the series is there. I finished that one already."

Apollo blinked. "Why? I mean, my description of the book wasn't really that appealing…"

"Aliens and humans trying to coexist? What could be more intriguing?" Klavier asked, making it seem like the topic was the most fascinating subject in the world.

"It's pretty ridiculous, really. I mean when Alien Prime starts creating the recipe for-"

Klavier covered his ears dramatically. "Ach. Spoilers, Forehead! I'm only on chapter one."

Apollo was about to apologize when a better idea popped into his head. "Alright, alright," Apollo said with a slightly proud grin. "I won't spoil it…if you actually get into the bed."

Klavier laughed, but Apollo kept his straight face. Eventually, he caught on to Apollo's seriousness and the laughter died down. "Really?" Apollo nodded. "Because I was just kidding about the spoilers, I don't really care if you tell me."

"Wha- _ugh_ -Just get in the bed," Apollo said, exasperated, right at the heels of Klavier's statement. His voice had come out more forceful than he intended.

Klavier looked at him for a moment, then smiled and slowly got under the covers, placing the thermos onto his nightstand.

Apollo stood, satisfied. That was all he had wanted. He was only prolonging his getting better by being up and about anyway. It was just the common sense thing to do. "So…I guess I should go now," he said again.

"I guess," Klavier echoed, the same discord in his voice as Apollo's. "Although, if you leave, chances are that I'll be over in the chair with my guitar again."

Apollo hesitated, then smirked with a sense of confidence that he didn't know he had. "If you wanted me to stay, you could just ask." He sat back down in the seat.

"Could you at least hand me the songwriting book, though?" Klavier asked. Apollo obliged, fighting the urge to flip it open.

"How come you don't want to be a musician?" Apollo asked. He looked around the room. "You clearly love music."

"It's a hobby," he shrugged.

"Seems like it's a little more than that. I mean… You asked me why I wanted to be a lawyer. Why do you? Want to be a prosecuting attorney, that is?" Apollo asked, shuffling a bit to get more comfortable in his seat.

"The pay is good," Klavier said easily. Too easily. "And criminals should be punished."

Apollo narrowed his eyes at Klavier, who had taken to pointedly taking a sip of his tea.

"No. That's not it," Apollo said. "That's too simple."

"Maybe I'm just a simple person."

"You're not. You might want to be. But you're not."

Klavier laughed a bit. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah. Really."

Klavier dropped his smile, and for a moment, his mask was off. He sighed, avoiding Apollo's curious gaze. "You know… My brother is a defense attorney." Opposites after all.

"I didn't know that."

"He's good."

"So… You want to be a prosecutor because your brother is a defense attorney?"

"Maybe," Klavier said, sounding like he was unsure himself of his reasons. "You know, the law isn't absolute. Because it exists in a world that is inherently without order. A world that is inherently chaotic. But somewhere in that chaos is an objective truth. That's what a prosecutor has to find. In the midst of all that. He has to piece together a story and find that truth."

He was philosophizing again, sounding like he was reading off a scripted answer. But that couldn't be it. Even that seemed…maybe not simple, but impersonal. And Klavier wasn't the impersonal type. Klavier felt things. He thought about things. He internalized everything. Apollo knew that much about him.

"What else?" Apollo said. Klavier looked at Apollo for a what seemed like a long time, and Apollo fought to keep his steady gaze on him until Klavier elaborated. "That's not a reason."

Klavier sighed again and added unmistakably, with his voice lowered: "And if I can't figure out the truth behind my brother…then I'll have to settle for other truths. In other ways. Maybe I'll stand against him in court one day. Standing right across from him. Bruder against Bruder. "

"Your brother really affects you."

"You know what the greatest tragedy of living is?" Klavier asked. Apollo shook his head. "All the hardest, coldest people were once as soft as water." He looked like he wanted to say more, and Apollo was willing to listen, but Klavier bit the inside of his bottom lip and shook his head. "I don't want to talk about my brother anymore," Klavier said, his voice hardening in a way that Apollo hadn't heard before.

Apollo didn't know what to say, so-"Okay, well, if you ever do… I guess… You can talk to me… If you want…" He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

Klavier slipped into that easy smile. "Danke, Herr Forehead."

Apollo rolled his eyes at the German as Klavier laughed. "So…what do you want to do?"

Klavier thought for a moment. "I'm going to finish writing this song." He turned to his bookshelf. "You want something to read?"

"I'm starting think that you just hate talking to me."

Klavier laughed his musical laugh. "Never," he said. "But you know how it is. Hard to say nein when inspiration hits. You'll stay, right?" He asked. He sounded almost vulnerable.

"If I must," Apollo said sarcastically, but smiled a bit nonetheless.

Klavier reached over to his nightstand and tossed Apollo the book that was sitting on it. "You can read this."

"The book of Psalms?" Apollo turned the small book over in his hands. "You're religious?" he asked, unable to hide his surprise.

"I haven't decided yet," Klavier said with a casual shrug. "Either way, doesn't mean I can't read it, does it?" He challenged with a teasing smile.

"I guess not, but why…?"

"You know, the Greek word by extension means 'the words accompanying the music'. They weren't written as poems, but songs to be sung. People were singing these two thousand years ago," Klavier said, and Apollo could see how much his eyes changed when he got excited about music. "And still do."

"Talk about timeless music," Apollo quipped without thinking.

Klavier chuckled. "It's an beautiful thing, to be so timeless."

"Maybe you'll write something that people will sing two thousand years from now," Apollo offered.

"Oh, it'll be in textbooks one day, for sure. Or whatever version of textbooks exists in two thousand years."

"Glad to see you're modest about it," Apollo deadpanned with a roll of his eyes as Klavier laughed.

Apollo sat and read as the boy with the glimmering shades wrote in his notebook. He looked almost wistful as he did so. Apollo could only wonder what he was writing about. He'd never felt so curious about anything before. He mostly minded his own business. But every once in a while, he'd glance up from his book and watch the gears turn in Klavier's head as he pieced together a song out of his dreams and imagination. Apollo wondered what that would be like - to be able to create something out of nothing.

Apollo read the Psalms and imagined what it would be like to sing them. He pictured Klavier singing them. He pictured harps and people from a different time, who wore different clothes and had a different way of life, singing them. He pictured Klavier amongst them, singing as if he was meant to be there. He fit in so seamlessly, in Apollo's mind. He pictured Klavier standing in front of the rock crowd in a stadium filled with screaming fans. It seemed to Apollo that Klavier could fit in everywhere, probably.

It was a beautiful thing to be timeless, indeed.

After a bit of time, Apollo handed Klavier his homemade chicken noodle soup that he'd gotten up early to make.

"Klavier?"

Klavier was a good friend, and Apollo liked being around him. And little, unimportant Apollo felt important around him, despite himself.

"Hmm?"

But Apollo and words didn't get along. Truthfully, Apollo thought that sometimes he just didn't let himself know what he was really thinking about.

"Thanks for teaching me to swim," Apollo said.

Klavier grinned. Maybe those words were enough for now.

* * *

 **Next update will probably be soon bc I'm just really excited to get this next part going. I like to be at least two chapters ahead in my writing before I post the next chapter on here so will hopefully be up in a few days.**

 **Thanks for reading 3**


	7. Chapter 7

Apollo was standing at the popsicle bike cart near the pool in the middle of July, waiting for the man behind the cart to hand him the popsicles that he wanted. He was starting to get good at this swimming thing. After all, a month is a long time to…

Okay. Fine. You want the truth?

Apollo pretty much had it down by this point. They would usually meet at the pool and would figure out what they wanted to do from there. Sometimes they went back to Klavier's house and read. Sometimes they would walk down to the arcade. Sometimes Apollo would watch in awe as Klavier swam and got along with all of the other people at the rec center. Sometimes Klavier would show off his swimming skills while Apollo waddled nearby.

That day, Klavier had taken to playing chicken fight in the pool, with a happy Trucy on his shoulders and Athena with one of Trucy's friends, Pearl, on her shoulders. Trucy had asked Apollo first, but after a few horrible tries at it, she loudly told him that _maybe_ she would try out a different partner. Apollo didn't take offense - he wasn't a fan of it anyway.

But looking at them from the outside, it looked like so much fun.

Apollo was happy. It was an odd feeling, to be happy. He almost didn't trust it. Happiness made him apprehensive nowadays. He was waiting to turn the corner and for all that happiness to blow up in his face. But he tried not to think about that. He focused on sunlight and swimming and boys with glimmering shades and having people who cared about him.

The vendor handed Apollo his five popsicles, all still wrapped, and started walking towards him. On the way there, he saw two guys outside of the rec center walking by holding hands. Apollo briefly wondered what that was like, to hold someone's had. He figured that you could sometimes find all the mysteries of the universe in someone's hand.

The two laughed about something and one leaned in for a quick peck. Nearby, as they walked and talked, a few people gave them odd glances and whispered to each other.

Apollo wanted to scoff at the whispering bystanders, but instead, he shook his head. People were weird. There are worse things in the world than a boy who likes to kiss other boys.

He continued his walk until he made it to the edge of the pool. Unlucky for him, it was right as the girl on top of Athena's shoulders successfully knocked Trucy off her balance, and with a playful scream, Trucy fell backwards, taking Klavier with her. Athena cheered, happy with her victory, but in doing so, lost her own balance, taking her and Pearl down with her.

Of course, that meant that Apollo stood on the edge, doubly splashed with water and a frown on his face.

"Good game, Klavier," Athena said as she leapt out of the pool.

Klavier laughed as he got up and leaned over to help Trucy out too. "I have a feeling you would be singing a different tune if I had won," he teased.

This was Klavier, in his element. Happy, light, carefree.

"That was so much fun!" Trucy jumped up and down. She turned her attention to Apollo. "Yay, popsicles!"

"Why are you all wet? You only went to get popsicles?" Klavier asked.

"Funny. You're a funny guy," Apollo deadpanned as Klavier grinned. He was 100% sure that Klavier was teasing him. _Well, two could play at that game_. "Yep. Got popsicles for you guys." He handed one to Pearl, Trucy, and Athena (and pointedly skipped over Klavier). "Well, I think that's everyone," Apollo said, still holding two in his hand.

Klavier smiled, completely unfazed. "Well, well, isn't someone a tease keeping their popsicle from me?"

 _I did not just hear him say that._ "Wh-what? No, that's not what I-" Apollo sputtered out, immediately flustered. Like clockwork, Klavier slipped a popsicle out of Apollo's still flustered hands and gestured towards him with a victorious smile. He was starting to think that Klavier liked doing that. Flustering Apollo.

Athena burst out laughing as Apollo tried to stop himself from going red in the face. Luckily, Trucy and Pearl had already run off into their own world of a conversation.

"So, Klav," Athena started, taking a bite out of her popsicle. "When are you and Ema going to skip to the end of the movie and get together already?"

Klavier laughed. "Is that how the movie ends?"

"Him and Ema?" Apollo echoed.

"I don't think she's very fond of me," Klavier said with a smile, shaking his head subtly.

"That just means she likes you," Athena said. "It's in every movie. Besides, you two would be cute together. Right, Apollo?"

Apollo blinked. He hadn't really seen them interact much in between that day at the bowling alley and today. Klavier looked at him expectantly - but there was something unreadable in his expression too.

"Um. I guess," Apollo said. He wondered if the words came out as empty as they felt inside of him. To be honest, he had a hard time imagining Klavier dating, if that made any sense. Sure, he was popular, and good-looking, and had girls fawning over him left and right. But in all the time he'd known him, they hadn't really talked about girls or a love life or any of the things that Apollo overheard guys talking about in regards to relationships. Apollo kind of liked that.

"See! Apollo agrees."

"I would hardly call that agreement," Klavier chuckled.

"Pfft. Apollo's not a talker. His 'I guess' really means 'of course'," Athena beamed. She reminded him so much of Clay. Before they could say anymore, Athena's eyes brightened at something behind Apollo. "Oh. I see Simon. I wanted to go talk to him about something. We'll talk about Klema later."

"Klema?" Apollo stared at her.

"Okay, the couple name's still a work-in-progress," she laughed. "See you guys later."

She walked over to Simon, leaving Klavier and Apollo standing.

When it was just the two of them standing there, Apollo took a bite from his popsicle. He wanted to ask about Ema. But the words felt odd in his mouth.

"How come you don't have a girlfriend?" Apollo blurted out instead.

Klavier laughed. "Is that something that I should have?"

Apollo rubbed the back of his neck. "Well. No. But you're so…You know..."

"An excellent explanation," Klavier teased sarcastically. "And why do you assume I want a girlfriend?"

If Apollo had been listening close enough, he would've heard Klavier's emphasis on one of those words. Or maybe he did hear it and chose not to acknowledge it; either way, instead, he said—"Oh. Well, that's true. Nothing wrong with wanting to be single. I mean, I'm single. I mean, it's good to be alone…" _Shut up. Shut up. Shut up._ Apollo bit the inside of his lip to stop his word vomit from coming out any further. This was why he didn't ever talk about relationships, or really anything that normal people talked about.

Klavier laughed again, promptly shutting Apollo up. He put his hand to his forehead dramatically. "Mein Gott. What have I gotten myself into?"

"What?"

"Never mind. I suppose it doesn't matter now anyway."

"What are you talking about?" Apollo said.

Suddenly, Klavier's whole demeanor physically changed. He looked visibly upset and not even trying to hide it. That was new. He took a deep breath. "Nothing." Klavier looked up and stretched, holding his arms up towards the heavens. "Such a nice day," he said. He turned around. "Let's go for a walk."

"Uh. Sure. But this isn't over."

A slight chuckle. "Of course not."

Pearl's cousin, Maya, offered to take Trucy home if they got back late, so Apollo and Klavier set off on foot. The sun had practically dried them off completely already.

Apollo noticed Klavier's long silence as they walked. He was staring at the sky when Klavier tapped him on the shoulder. "We need to have a conversation."

"A conversation?"

"A talk."

"We talk every day," Apollo said, confused.

"Yeah. But I mean a talk, Herr Forehead."

"Is it about why you should use my real name?"

"Nein," Klavier said with a laugh. "I like the nickname."

"Then I'm not interested," Apollo huffed, then turned his head towards him. "…A talk about what?"

"About what we're like. Our interests. Stuff like that."

 _Where did this guy come from?_ Apollo shook his head. "That's not natural. We're supposed to talk about these things as they come up. Not have a rapid fire talk about everything."

"Says who?"

"I don't know. Society?"

"What's your favorite color?" Klavier said, pointedly ignoring him.

Apollo sighed. "We don't need to do this."

"Is it red?"

"Yes," Apollo said, his slight frustration showing in his voice.

"Mine's purple," Klavier offered. "Favorite car?"

"These have nothing to do with what we're like. They aren't even substantial questions-"

"Nah. You don't seem like a car person," Klavier mused.

"I'm not. I ride a bike."

"I think I'd want a motorcycle," Klavier said.

"Those are dangerous."

"Danger is my middle name," Klavier said jokingly, like he was in some sort of poorly-budgeted action flick.

Apollo rolled his eyes, but it got mixed in with a laugh that he couldn't stop. "You did not just say that."

"Favorite song?"

"I don't have one," Apollo shrugged. "You?" Apollo added, finally giving in after realizing that Klavier wasn't going to relent.

"Does one that I've written count?"

"Seems pretty arrogant," Apollo said sarcastically. "But I guess it counts."

"I'm okay with being arrogant."

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me."

"Ouch. If I wasn't so arrogant, that would hurt," Klavier teased. That made Apollo laugh.

All afternoon, Klavier shot questions at him. And Apollo answered them. At some point through the day, the hot day had turned cool. When the questions stopped, they walked in silence. The whole world seemed to be quiet and calm and Apollo wanted to be the world and feel like that.

As they walked, the breeze felt especially cool. Apollo knew he'd felt the breeze against his face before. But it didn't feel like he'd ever done it. It felt like it was happening for the first time. Klavier was saying something, but Apollo wasn't really listening. He was staring at the sky, listening to the stillness of the earth.

He looked at Klavier, the breeze alive in his long, golden hair.

"We're leaving for a year," Klavier said.

Apollo froze. He was suddenly sad. No, not exactly sad. It felt like someone had punched him. "Leaving?"

"Yeah."

"Why? I mean, when?"

"Kristoph is going to be a visiting professor for a year at some university in Chicago. I think they're interested in hiring him," Klavier said. Then, under his breath. "God help the next generation."

"Oh. Well, that's great," Apollo said.

"And there is a legal academy at one of the high schools there. If we end up staying, I can attend the academy before graduation, which will make me more competitive to colleges."

He'd been happy, and then, just like that, Apollo was sad. He couldn't stand it, how sad he was. He didn't look at Klavier. He just looked up at the sky. "That's really great. So when are you leaving?"

"The end of August."

Six weeks. Apollo smiled. "That's great."

"You keep saying 'that's great'."

"Well, it is."

Klavier sighed. "Yeah, it is." A few more seconds of silence passed. "Aren't you sad, that I'm leaving?"

"Why would I be sad?"

Klavier smiled and then, Apollo didn't know, there was this look on his face and it was so hard to tell what Klavier was thinking and feeling.

"I want to say something to you, Apollo."

"Okay," Apollo said.

And then Klavier didn't say anything.

"What?" Apollo said.

"Never mind," Klavier said. "It doesn't matter."

Apollo thought that it probably mattered a lot. "Okay," Apollo said.

He stopped as they got to a crosswalk. "Look," Klavier said. He pointed at a bird in the middle of the street that was trying to fly. Apollo could see that one of his wings was broken.

"He's going to die," Apollo whispered.

"Nah. We can save it," Klavier said easily.

Of course they could. Because Klavier was the type of person who saved injured birds from the road.

Klavier handed his popsicle to Apollo and hopped casually into the middle of the street and tried to pick up the bird. Apollo watched as Klavier picked up the frightened bird. He turned, the bird in his hands, and gave Apollo an _I-told-you-we-could-save-it_ face. That was the last thing that Apollo remembered before the car swerved around the corner.

 _Klavier! Klavier!_ Apollo knew the screams were coming from inside him. _Klavier!_

Apollo remembered thinking that it was all a dream. All of it. It was just a bad dream. He kept thinking that the world was ending. He thought about birds falling from the sky. He thought about how quickly happiness could vanish.

 _Klavier!_

* * *

 **hehe.**

 **Once again, thank you to everyone who is reading this story! I appreciate all your beautiful faces.**


	8. Chapter 8

Apollo remembered the car swerving around the corner and Klavier standing in the middle of the street holding a bird with a broken wing. He remembered the way the breeze came alive in his hair. He remembered screaming his name. _Klavier!_

Apollo woke up in a hospital room. Both of his legs were in a cast.

So was his left arm. Everything seemed so far away and his whole body hurt and he kept thinking W _hat happened?_ Even his fingers hurt. He felt like a soccer ball after a game. Apollo figured he must have groaned or something, because all of a sudden Trucy and Mr. Wright were standing right beside his bed. Trucy was crying, and even Mr. Wright looked like he'd been tearing up as well.

"Don't cry," Apollo said. His throat was dry and he didn't sound like himself. He sounded like someone else.

Trucy bit her lip and tried to oblige to no avail. She tenderly reached out to touch his arm then stopped herself, as if he were something fragile that would break at any moment.

Apollo just looked at her. "Just don't cry, okay?"

"The doctors said you almost died," Trucy said, releasing a fresh set of tears. She sobbed into her father's torso.

Part of Apollo was beginning to register everything. Another part of him just wanted to be somewhere else. Maybe none of that was really happening. But it was happening. It was. It didn't seem real. Except that Apollo was in some serious pain. And that w _as_ real. It was the most real thing Apollo had ever known.

"It hurts," Apollo said.

Mr. Wright finally spoke up. His eyes were red too, and he didn't make any effort to hide how relieved he was that Apollo was awake. He squeezed Trucy's shoulder, which was leaned up against him, lovingly. He pushed a button on his IV-then put it into Apollo's hand. "If you're in a lot of pain, you can push this every fifteen minutes."

"What is it?"

"Morphine."

"Oh good. Drugs."

Mr. Wright cleared his throat. "You, uh…You really had us worried there," he said, his voice sounding like it was getting choked up again. Apollo could tell that he was trying to put on a brave face for Trucy.

Apollo looked around the room and wondered why he'd woken up. He kept thinking that if he could only get back to sleep, then it wouldn't hurt anymore. He looked at them both. They were so worried…about him. About little, unimportant Apollo. "It's okay," Apollo said. "Everything's okay." He didn't really believe what he was saying.

Mr. Wright was wearing a serious smile. "Apollo," he said. "You're so brave."

"I'm not."

"You are," Mr. Wright said.

Trucy stepped forward and again gingerly moved towards his arm. She froze again. Tears still streamed down her face. Apollo fought through the pain and placed his hand over hers. "See? I'm okay, Trucy. I'm real. I'm right here."

"You almost died," she sobbed.

"But I didn't. I didn't die. I'm here."

"You were here before. And you were sleeping and they said you might not wake up," she said. "I touched your hand and you wouldn't wake up," she said, her voice rising.

Apollo didn't know what to say. "I…I'm sorry," he said, as though that would solve everything. He squeezed her hand. "I won't do it again."

She wiped the tears from her face, trying to stop more tears from falling. "Good," she said through sniffles.

He wanted to ask them what happened. But he was afraid. He didn't know… His throat felt dry and heavy, and then it all came back to him and the image of Klavier holding a wounded bird flashed into his head. Apollo couldn't catch his breath and he was afraid, and he thought that Klavier might be dead, and then were was all this panic living inside of him. He could feel an awful thing going on in his heart. "Klavier?" He heard his name in his mouth.

Suddenly, a nurse was standing next to him. "I'm going to check your blood pressure," she said. Apollo just laid there and let her do what she wanted. He didn't care. The nurse smiled. "How's your pain?"

"My pain is fine," Apollo whispered.

She laughed. "You gave us a good scare, young man."

"I didn't do it on purpose," he said. Apollo closed his eyes. "Klavier?"

"He's fine," Mr. Wright said.

He opened his eyes.

Apollo heard Trucy's voice. "He's scared. He's really scared."

"But he's okay?"

"Yes. He's okay. He's been waiting for you to wake up," Mr. Wright said. "He's here."

Klavier. Klavier was alive. He felt himself breathe. "And the bird?"

Mr. Wright reached over and squeezed his shoulder. " _That's_ what you're asking about?" He laughed in mild disbelief. "Crazy boys. Crazy, crazy boys."

Apollo strained to look around the room. "Where is he?"

Mr. Wright responded. "He went to get something to eat, finally. He hasn't left. He's been here for the last thirty-six hours-waiting for you to-"

"Thirty-six hours?" Klavier stayed for _thirty-six hours_?

"You had surgery."

"Surgery?"

"They had to repair your bones."

"Okay."

"You were awake for a little while after the surgery."

"I-I don't remember."

"The doctor said you probably wouldn't. You were in pain. They gave you something. Then you were out again."

"Did I say anything?"

"You just moaned. You asked for someone named Clay. Then you asked for Klavier. He wouldn't leave," Mr. Wright said. "He's a very steadfast young man, isn't he?"

That made Apollo smile. "Yeah. He is."

Mr. Wright handed him a glass of water and he drank a little bit from the straw. "Your legs," Mr. Wright said. "The car ran over your legs."

"It isn't the driver's fault."

He nodded. "You had a very, very fine surgeon. All the breaks are below the knees, and-" he stopped. "They thought you might lose your legs."

Trucy let out another sob.

"It's okay," Apollo said again. "Everything's okay."

Klavier walked into the room. Klavier was there and he was real.

They looked at each other and Apollo smiled with so much relief he thought his face would explode. He had some stitches above his left eye and he was wearing a cast on his right arm. "Hey," Klavier said. He looked tired.

"Hi," Apollo said.

"We sort of match," Klavier said. His tone was light, but almost like he was straining for it to be so.

"I think I've got you beat," Apollo countered.

"I guess you're not wrong there."

"I guess not," Apollo said. "You don't look so good."

Klavier was standing right next to him. "Neither do you."

They just looked at each other. "You sound tired," Klavier observed.

"Yeah."

"I-I'm glad you woke up." Klavier cleared his throat.

"Yeah. I did. But it hurts less when I sleep," Apollo groaned. "Speaking of which, why did you stay here for thirty-six hours? Did _you_ get any sleep?" Apollo prodded, already unhappy that Klavier had spent so much time worrying about him.

Klavier's face got serious. "You saved my life, Apollo." He said it like it was enough of an explanation.

"Klavier's hero. Just what I always wanted to be."

"Don't," Klavier started, shaking his head. "Don't do that. Don't do the sarcasm thing. You almost got yourself killed." The worry was evident in his voice.

"I didn't do it on purpose."

Klavier looked like he was about to cry. " _Schatz_."

"Huh?" Apollo hadn't heard that word before. He saw the nurse smile at hearing the word and made a mental note to look it up later.

He shook his head. " _Nichts_. You pushed me. You pushed me and you saved my life."

"You're not going to cry, are you? Tears make me tired," Apollo said.

Klavier laughed. And then he got really serious. "You took a dive like you were in a swimming pool."

"We don't have to talk about this."

It didn't matter. Klavier just kept talking. "You dove at me, and you pushed me out of the way. It all happened so fast, and you just knew what to do. Except… You could've gotten yourself killed," he said incredulously. "All because of me. Standing in the middle of the road trying to save a bird."

"Klavier-"

"I almost got you killed," Klavier said darkly.

"You didn't do anything. You were just being you."

"Perhaps I should stop then."

"No. Don't. Don't stop being you."

"You saved my life," Klavier said again.

"I told you. I didn't do it on purpose."

That made everyone laugh. Boy, was Apollo tired. And it hurt so much and he remembered Klavier squeezing his hand and saying something in German that Apollo didn't understand. And then in English, over and over, "I'm sorry I'm sorry Apollo forgive me forgive me."

Apollo remembered some words spilling out of his mouth and he knew that Klavier and Trucy and Mr. Wright were still in the room, but Apollo couldn't stay awake.

He remembered Klavier squeezing his hand again and maybe Apollo squeezed it back - he wasn't sure. The morphine made him feel a little high and it was hard for him to piece things together. But he remembered thinking, _Forgive you? For what, Klavier? What is there to forgive?_ before he drifted to sleep again.

Apollo didn't know how long he was in the hospital. A few days. Four days. Maybe five. Six. He didn't know. It felt like forever.

They ran tests to make sure that he had no other internal injuries. Especially brain injuries. He had a neurologist come in and see him. He didn't talk much. He mostly just took notes.

The nurses, though, they liked to make small talk and were in love with taking vitals. That's what they did. They gave him a pill to help him sleep, then woke him up all night. Apollo just wanted to sleep. He wanted to sleep and wake and to see that his casts were gone. That's what he told one of the nurses. "Can't you just put me to sleep and wake me up when they take my casts off?"

She just laughed.

On one particular day in the hospital, Apollo woke up and saw the back of someone who looked like Klavier. Apollo blinked a few times as his vision cleared up.

No. It wasn't Klavier.

It was Kristoph.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading! :)**

 **And now back to my OITNB binge-watch.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry this post took a while! Got a lot of IRL stuff going on and things have been a little crazy, will try to update soon, but things probably won't be settling down for another few weeks. Apartment hunting, job interviews, car stuff, etc. etc. Adulting is hard, haha. But next chap is almost done so hopefully the next chapter will be up within a week or so. Thank you all so much for reading. :) Kind of a long chapter, so, hope you enjoy. ^.^**

* * *

Kristoph was there, staring out the window with his hands folded nearly behind his back. Apollo didn't know what to do. He had no idea why Krisoph was there. Was he going to reprimand him for what he did? Why would he come all the way to the hospital to do that?

Apollo awkwardly cleared his throat, and Kristoph turned his head slightly towards the sound. From the side, if Apollo didn't look to closely, he saw just how similar the two of them looked. It would've been easy for Apollo to mistake him as Klavier, albeit a slightly taller, poised version of him.

Kristoph turned, his glasses glinting in the sunlight beaming through the windows. He walked over to Apollo and Apollo didn't know why but for some reason he wondered if Kristoph was there to smother him with a pillow.

"Mr. Justice," Kristoph greeted.

"H-Hi Mr. Gavin."

"Please, call me Kristoph," he said politely.

 _I'd rather not._ "Okay," Apollo said. "Are you…waiting for Klavier?"

"No," he said. "Klavier should be here shortly. He returned home. He needs to start packing. As much as he'd like to spend the rest of his days sitting here in this hospital, he's got other priorities that need attention."

"Oh. Right. Congrats on the job," he said plainly, ignoring the dull pain that he felt in his chest.

"Klavier is quite unhappy with it."

Apollo shifted slightly. "Moving is hard for anyone," he said.

"Yet he appears much more visibly unhappy this time around," Kristoph said with those scrutinizing eyes.

"Is…Is there something you want, Mr. Gavin?"

Kristoph pushed up his glasses and shook his head. "You, Mr. Justice. You're the reason he doesn't want to leave. He's going to miss you," he said.

"I'll miss him too," Apollo said, immediately regretting it. He was sorry he'd said it. It was true, but he didn't have to say it.

Kristoph looked at him. "Klavier. He smiles more now. And not that carefree smile he puts on for show."

"You notice that sort of thing?" Apollo asked, slightly shocked.

"It's because of you," Kristoph deduced.

Apollo didn't want to know that. He didn't know _why_ he didn't want to know that. But he just went with it.

"I'm kind of a boring guy when you think about it. Don't know what Klavier sees." Apollo couldn't believe he'd just said that to him.

"You'll have to ask him," Kristoph said. It was a tone he'd heard before. The tone of someone who seemed to be aware of something that Apollo wasn't aware of yet. "Anyway, it would appear you saved my brother's life."

Apollo stared at him for what seemed like a long time. He pictured Kristoph being as soft as water at one point in time. "Would you have been sad?" Apollo blurted. "If he'd died. Would you have been sad?" Apollo was sure that Kristoph was going to yell or curse at him or call him downright callous for even suggesting such a thing. But at the same time, it wasn't exactly like he could imagine Kristoph in tears at Klavier's funeral.

Apollo shuddered. Klavier's funeral? He didn't like to think about that. At. All.

Kristoph's mouth twitched. "What sort of man do you think I am, Mr. Justice?" He sounded slightly appalled.

Apollo wanted to backtrack. He didn't know why he'd said that. He thought of Klavier and how the only thing that really seemed to break him was his brother and then the words just flew out of him. "It's just… Klavier… You really affect him. He doesn't like to talk about you. He doesn't even seem sure that you love him." _Why_ was he saying these things? Apollo wanted to shrivel up into a hole.

"I suppose he wouldn't be my brother otherwise." It sounded like there was disdain in Kristoph's voice. "He is too sentimental for his own good."

That made Apollo mad. More mad than he thought he would be. "You're wrong," Apollo said, feeling the heat rise in his cheeks. "It makes him stronger. He lives in a mean world and yet none of it has rubbed off on him. How could a guy live without meanness? It's much easier to let it in. But he doesn't. He's not cynical or broody or anything that you'd expect him to be."

Kristoph looked at him pensively.

"He doesn't want to be like you," Apollo continued. Again, without thinking. Klavier would probably never want to speak to him again after hearing that Apollo had said all of this to his brother.

Kristoph's mouth twitched again. "Good."

"Good?"

Kristoph resumed his stance over by the window. "If he hates me, that will make everything easier for him."

"But he doesn't. He doesn't hate you. He wants to understand you. You're the only thing he wants to understand, I think," Apollo said, not realizing how upset he was getting.

"You're very animated about my brother," Kristoph said with a raised eyebrow.

Apollo clammed up for a moment, mentally calming himself down. "All the secrets in the universe, and you're the only one he wants to understand."

Apollo didn't know if his words had any effect, but Kristoph stayed silent for a long time. "I see." Kristoph turned to Apollo. "Thank you, Mr. Justice."

"F-For what?"

"For saving my brother's life. Think of me what you will, but I came here to express my gratitude."

"Everyone keeps doing that. You don't have to thank me."

"In any case, I should be off." Kristoph made for the door, then paused, turning to Apollo once more. "We encounter many events in our lives, Mr. Justice. All of us. Not any of the simple. Klavier and I have dealt with them in different ways."

"He's not going to stop. Caring about you," Apollo said. "That should mean something to you."

Kristoph twitched again. "Enjoy the rest of your day, Mr. Justice," He said, and then he walked out, leaving Apollo to wonder if that entire exchange had really happened.

Shortly after Kristoph left, Apollo's surgeon came in. He came in every day, to see how Apollo was doing. This time, though, he was there to answer all of Apollo's questions. Which was good, since he had lots of them. If the doctor noticed that Apollo was still shaken, he didn't mention it, which was good.

"So I have pins in my legs?" Apollo asked when the doctor settled into the hospital room.

"Yes."

"Permanently?"

"Yes."

"And you won't have to go in again?"

"Hope not," the doctor said. "Can I tell you something, Apollo?" He added. "I'm surprised at how well you held up during the operation. And I'm surprised how well you're doing now. It's amazing, really."

Apollo shrugged. He didn't feel so amazing. "When am I going to stop feeling like crap?"

"In no time."

"No time? Am I going to be hurting and itching for eight weeks?"

"It'll get better."

"Sure. And how come, if the legs were broken below the knee, my casts are above the knee?"

"I just want to keep you still for two or three weeks," the doctor started. Two or three weeks.. "I don't want you to be bending. Might hurt yourself again. After a few weeks, I'll change your casts. Then you'll be able to bend your legs."

"A few weeks?"

"We'll give it three weeks."

"Three weeks without bending my legs?"

"It's not such a long time."

"It's summer," Apollo deadpanned. _It's summer, and Klavier is leaving and_ _I can't bend my legs._ Klavier would be gone by the time Apollo had fully healed.

"And then I'll get you to a physical therapist."

Apollo took a breath. "And this?" He said, aiming his arm cast at him. Apollo was getting really depressed.

"That fracture wasn't so bad. It'll be off in a month."

"A month? Geez."

Apollo wanted to cry. Mostly he was mad and frustrated and he knew that the doctor was going to tell him that he needed to be patient. And that's exactly what he said.

"You just need to be patient. You'll be good as new. You're strong. You're young. You have healthy bones. I have every reason to believe that you're going to heal very nicely."

 _Very nicely. Patient. Great._

The doctor checked the feeling in Apollo's toes, had him breathe, had him follow his fingers with his left eye, then his right eye. "You know," he said. "that's a helluva thing you did for your friend. Klavier, was it?"

Apollo sighed. "Look, I wish people would stop talking about that."

He looked at Apollo. He had this look on his face. "You could have wound up parapalegic. Or worse."

"Worse?"

"You could have been killed, Apollo."

 _Killed. Okay._ "People keep saying that. Look, I'm alive."

"You don't much like being a hero, do you?"

And then the words flowed out and Apollo couldn't stop them. "I told Klavier I didn't do it on purpose. Everyone thought that was funny. But it wasn't a joke. I don't even remember diving towards him. It wasn't as if I said to myself, _I'm going to save my friend, Klavier_. It wasn't like that. It was just a reflex, you know? Like when someone hits your funny bone below the knee. Your leg just jerks. That's how it was. It just happened."

"Just a reflex? It just happened?"

"Exactly."

"And you're responsible for none of that?"

"It was just one of those things."

"Just one of those things?"

"Yeah."

The doctor straightened up, finishing with his check-up. "Listen, son, I know you don't think of yourself as being brave or courageous or any of those things. Of course you don't."

"I'm just a regular guy," Apollo said.

"Yeah, that's just how you see yourself. But, you pushed your friend out of the way of an oncoming car. You did that, Apollo, and you didn't think about yourself or what would happen to you. You did that because that's who you are. I'd think about that if I were you."

"What for?"

"Just think about it," the doctor said.

"I'm not sure I want to do all that thinking," Apollo said warily.

"Okay. Just so you know, Apollo. I think you're a very rare young man. That's what I think."

"I told you, Doc, it was just a reflex."

The doctor grinned at him and put his hand on Apollo's shoulder. "I know your kind, Apollo. I'm on to you." Apollo didn't know exactly what he meant by that. But he was smiling.

Just as he said that, Klavier walked into the room. He had a bag slung over his left shoulder, and he looked exhausted. When he saw the doctor he paused.

"Oh. I can come back," he said, already starting to slink out of the room.

The doctor smiled. "No need. I'm done here. Think about what I said, Apollo." He walked out of the room and left Klavier and Apollo alone.

Klavier looked, well, not so good. He tried to pretend it didn't hurt him to look at Apollo but Klavier wasn't good at hiding all of the things he felt. Apollo didn't know what to say. _There's nothing to forgive you for, Klavier. Smile. It's over. It's okay._

Klavier placed his bag onto one of the chairs and made a strained noise. "How's your arm?" Apollo asked.

"It's fine."

"And your face?" Apollo said.

"I like looking at it."

Apollo rolled his eyes. "I'm glad this experience has humbled you."

Klavier laughed. Apollo liked hearing him laugh. It made things seem normal. A part of Apollo thought things would never be normal again.

"I was going to come by earlier, but I had to start packing." The sadness was back in his voice.

"Yeah, I know," Apollo said. Klavier looked at him in confusion. "Oh. Um… Your brother stopped by."

Klavier blinked wordlessly. _He didn't tell Klavier?_

"My brother came to visit you?" Klavier echoed.

Apollo nodded. "He wanted to thank me."

"I see," Klavier said coolly. "How are you feeling?"

"Um. I'm fine. Don't you want to know what else he said?"

"Nein," Klavier said, though his tone betrayed his words.

"Are you ever going to tell me what happened between you two?"

"There's nothing to tell," Klavier said.

"Somehow I find that hard to believe."

Klavier sighed and smiled a sad smile. "Persistent, aren't you?"

"I've been told that's part of my charm," Apollo said.

"By who?"

"All my many, many friends. I'm quite a popular guy, you know," Apollo said with a teasing sense of cynicism.

Klavier laughed at that. "I admire it. Your persistence. Most people don't like to push it. I used to prefer it that way."

"And now?"

"I like _your_ persistence," Klavier sighed, like it was a bad thing. Apollo liked that he liked his persistence. "Why do you want to know, anyway?" Klavier had so many secrets. And all Apollo wanted to do was discover them. He wondered if it would take a lifetime.

A lifetime of discovering Klavier's secrets. Now wouldn't that be something.

He couldn't very well say any of that to him, though. For one, it was _weird_. Apollo shook the thought off. A lifetime was a long time, anyway. "I don't know," Apollo shrugged. "Weren't you the one who said we had to talk about what we're like? That seems like a pretty big part."

Klavier chuckled, and it sounded oddly ironic. "You're not wrong there. Maybe I'll tell you one day."

"I'll be here," Apollo said, though he wasn't sure if that was even true. It wasn't like he could see into the future. "I didn't run, remember?" Apollo smiled, trying to infuse some lightheartedness into the conversation.

"This is a different type of rain, Apollo," Klavier said solemnly. He smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes.

Of course. Things were different now.

Apollo smiled a tight-lipped, serious smile. _Good going, Apollo._ He shifted in his hospital bed a bit, groaning a bit in the process.

Klavier instantly caught on to it. "Does it still hurt a lot?"

Apollo shrugged. "I don't know. Sometimes all I can think about is my legs. I just want to yank the casts off, and…I don't know."

"It's all my fault," Klavier whispered. Apollo hated that thing in his voice.

"Listen," Apollo said, unable to stop his exasperation from leaking into his voice. "This whole thing is _not_ your fault, okay, Klav?" _Klav?_ That was new. Klavier seemed to notice it too, because he raised a curious eyebrow, though he didn't comment on it. "Let's just move on. You don't have to thank me or feel guilty. You didn't _do_ anything wrong. Let's not talk about the accident or anything. Consider it a rule. Okay?" He thought of the doctor's words. Apollo could tell that Klavier was thinking. He hoped that Klavier would see that he was being serious.

"Okay."

"Okay. No more," Apollo said seriously. It didn't matter. Things were already different. Apollo could tell. Klavier still looked guilty.

Klavier took out his songwriting book.

"You're going to write songs _now_?" Apollo said, incredulous.

"Nein. I just thought that maybe you'd want to look at some of the songs I've written."

"Okay…" Apollo said, straining to sit up. He pushed the button on the bed so that he could do so.

Klavier handed him the book. Apollo started to open it.

"You can look at it after I leave."

Apollo held a question on his face, and Klavier caught it. "You have rules. I have rules, too," Klavier said with a teasing smile.

It was good to laugh. Apollo wanted to laugh and laugh and laugh until he was healed or until he became someone else. The great thing about laughing and the great thing about laughing with Klavier was that it made Apollo forget about the strange and awful feeling in his legs. Even if it was only for a minute.

Klavier stayed for a bit and talked about something that had happened on the way there. Apollo wasn't sure. He didn't really listen to the story. It was enough just to hear the sound of Klavier's voice. It was like listening to a song. Apollo kept thinking of the bird with the broken wing. He hadn't even brought up the courage to ask about what happened to the bird, and he couldn't do so now because he'd just finished telling Klavier that he didn't want to talk about the accident.

When he finally left, Apollo stared at his notebook. He'd never led anybody look at his songs. And now he was showing them to him. To Apollo. To little, unimportant Apollo.

Apollo knew that he was only letting him see his work because he was grateful.

Apollo hated all of that gratitude.

Klavier felt like he owed Apollo something. Apollo didn't want that. Not _that_. He wasn't doing it because he wanted to. And that made Apollo upset.

Apollo took his songwriting book and flung it across the room.

It was just Apollo's luck that Mr. Wright was walking into the room just as Klavier's book hit the wall.

"What was that about?"

Apollo didn't say anything.

Mr. Wright moved and picked up the sketch pad. He sat down, and Apollo could see that he was going to open it.

"Don't open it," Apollo said.

Mr. Wright stopped. "Why?"

"Klavier doesn't like to show people his songs."

"Only you?"

"…I guess so."

"Then why did you throw it across the room?"

"I don't know," Apollo said. Apollo felt angry and sad and he wanted to scream that he wasn't fine. He wasn't sure what he was angry at. And he wasn't sure what he was sad about. Klavier? The situation? His casts?

Mostly, though, he was tired. Tired of Klavier's face looking riddled with guilt. He wasn't sure if he would ever see Klavier's face without it. It would always be there, behind his eyes. And Apollo didn't like that. The book felt heavy in his hands.

Mr. Wright sighed. He'd never heard Mr. Wright sigh so loudly. He stood, putting the notebook lightly on the chair. _Good_. Apollo didn't want it near him.

"Apollo," he said, in a tone that sounded suspiciously like he was about to be lectured. "I know you don't want to talk about this, but I think-"

"I don't," Apollo said. "I…I'm sorry, Mr. Wright. But I really don't want to talk about it."

"I know this is hard, Apollo, but keeping everything bottled up inside you is just going to make you explode later."

"I don't look forward to the day, but if it has to be that way…" Apollo said stubbornly with a shrug.

"Apollo," Mr. Wright said, unfazed. "Talking about it will help. Trust me."

"Talking doesn't help everybody," Apollo said quietly.

"You know, there's something that Ms. Fey always tells me. The worst of times is when you have to put on your biggest smile," Mr. Wright said. Right. Ms. Mia Fey. Apollo hadn't really had much of a chance to speak to her whenever he worked.

"This isn't the worst of times. And I don't really feel like smiling," Apollo said. He was being difficult, and he knew it. But he was tired. And he didn't want to deal with Mr. Wright's attempt at being paternal.

"How do you know if you don't try?"

Apollo fake-smiled. "I got nothing."

Mr. Wright laughed. "Give it some time." Still, Mr. Wright looked like he really wanted to help Apollo feel better. He was trying. Which was more than Apollo was doing.

Apollo sighed. "My…My best friend and I…" Apollo started. He didn't know why he was even saying this. "We had this thing where we would should 'I'm fine!' at the top of our lungs whenever things weren't fine. I guess it's kind of like that."

"Yeah. I would say so."

"Except, I don't feel fine. And I can't even muster up the voice to yell that I am," Apollo said. "I hate this. And I can't say that I hate this because then Klavier will feel even more guilty."

Mr. Wright smiled. "You care about him a lot, huh?"

 _Not this again_.

"He's leaving. In a few weeks," Apollo said. Mr. Wright looked at him in surprise.

"He is?"

"His brother got a job as a visiting professor."

A look of understanding washed over Mr. Wright's face. "Is that why you're so upset?"

"Wh-What? Why would that be why I'm upset?" Apollo said.

Mr. Wright smiled.

"I'm upset because I'm sitting here in this hospital room going crazy," Apollo continued. "You're smiling like there's something else to it. There's not. That's it," Apollo huffed hot-headedly.

"I just want to say one thing, Apollo."

"I think you already have."

Mr. Wright shook his head. He was so patient with him. It was almost annoying to Apollo. Almost. "We're all fighting our own private wars, Apollo. I know that you're fighting one right now. Trust me. I've been there."

Apollo wanted to ask and Mr. Wright looked like he wanted Apollo to ask. But he just couldn't. He didn't want to know. Knowing would make things worse. "Listen, Mr. Wright, I appreciate what you're doing, but I'm fine."

"You just said earlier that you weren't fine. Sounds like a contradiction, don't you think?" Mr. Wright said with a knowing smile.

"…I'll _be_ fine. Is that better?" Apollo said darkly.

"Not really. But it'll have to do for now."

Apollo searched for a change of subject. _Any_ change of subject. "Where's Trucy?" Apollo finally said. "I didn't know we had money for a babysitter," he quipped before he could stop himself. He half-expected Mr. Wright to take back his offer to adopt him.

To Apollo's surprise, Mr. Wright snorted with laughter at Apollo's quip. "She's with Miles. He's taking her to some Steel Samurai movie. Though I think it's more for him than her."

 _Miles?_ Where had Apollo heard that name before? "Is that that friend you grew up with? The prosecutor?" Apollo asked. He vaguely remembered a few mentions of him, though in the four months he'd been there, Apollo had never met the man himself.

Mr. Wright smiled. "Yeah. A friend." He sounded like he had his own personal inside joke.

Apollo looked at him oddly. But before he could say anything, Mr. Wright spoke up. "Anyway, just think about what I said. I've got to go meet up with a client, but I'll be back a little later. Trucy wants to see you for a bit. She's got some new magic tricks she wants to show you."

"That girl loves magic."

"We could all use a little magic in our lives. Anyway. Try and get some rest," Mr. Wright said. "I can bring you some work from the office if you get too bored."

Apollo's face fell. "You just told me to try and get some rest."

Mr. Wright laughed. "I'm only kidding, Apollo… I'll wait until you're home for that."

"Gee. Thanks," Apollo said sarcastically.

Another smile. "Should be back in around four hours or so." Mr. Wright started for the exit.

"Mr. Wright…?"

"You can call me Phoenix, you know."

"I know, I just…" He couldn't exactly call him _Dad_. Now _that_ would be weird. But calling him by his first name also felt weird. Apollo shook his head. "Thanks. For taking me in. And…everything, I guess."

Mr. Wright-Phoenix-smiled. "I don't believe I was mistaken in doing so. And no need to thank me."

There was something in Phoenix's eyes. Wisdom, maybe? Apollo wasn't sure.

Phoenix patted Apollo's shoulder. "Like I said, Apollo. We all fight our own private wars. Just make sure you're not fighting yours in the wrong way."


	10. Chapter 10

Klavier never came back to visit while he was in the hospital. But he'd call twice a day just to say hi. Apollo was always glad that Klavier called. But he was also glad that he didn't come see him. He didn't know why. For some reason, Apollo thought: _My life will be different now_. And Apollo kept repeating that to himself. Apollo wondered what it would've been like to lose his legs. And in a sense, he had lost them. Not forever. But for a while.

He never asked about the book or what Apollo thought about his songs. Apollo thought that he was punishing Klavier. He'd showed a part of himself that no one else had seen. A piece of himself that he'd never given to another human being. And this is what he got in return. Apollo hadn't even bothered to look at it. _Why am I doing that?_

Apollo got to practice using a wheelchair with his legs out. But everything was still so _hard._ He thought he'd be happy when the doctor said that he could finally go back home. He wanted to be as ecstatic as Trucy and Mr. Wright was. But he wasn't.

Apollo hated living in the small and claustrophobic atmosphere of their house. He didn't like being waited on all the time. He hated that Mr. Wright and Trucy were so patient with him.

He practically begged Mr. Wright to give him some work to sort out so that he could have something to do while he sat on the couch or in his room. Sometimes Trucy would go to the pool or hang out with her friends. Mostly she stayed in, showing him magic tricks or watching TV with him. Sometimes they would talk. Mostly, Trucy would talk and Apollo would listen.

Even though Klavier didn't visit Apollo in the hospital after he brought him the book, he came to visit Apollo every day when he was home. Apollo wasn't sure if he was happy to see him or not.

"You don't seem very happy when Klavier comes over," Trucy commented one day after Klavier had left.

Apollo shifted from his spot on the couch. "What do you mean?"

She hesitated. "You don't smile as much."

"Smiles are like that, Truce. They come and go," he said. He offered her a small smile, but she pouted at him instead.

"Daddy says that he likes you a lot."

"Well, I would hope so - I am living in his house," Apollo deflected.

"Not Daddy. Klavier!" Trucy declared.

"I-I know, Truce. I was kidding," Apollo said, then sat back. "I mean, he's my friend. Of course we like each other." Trucy opened her mouth to speak again, but Apollo beat her to it. "Listen, Trucy. If it seems like I'm not happy, it's just because I'm still a little sad about having these casts," Apollo said. "It's hard to do anything with them."

Trucy sat next to him on the couch. "I'm glad that you're okay."

Apollo smiled. "So am I."

"I was really scared."

He squeezed her shoulder. "I know. I'm sorry."

Trucy smiled a toothy smile and wrapped her arms around him, engulfing him in a hug. "Ow…Trucy…This is excruciating…" Apollo strained.

"Excruciating? What's that?"

"Pain…ful! Very, very painful," Apollo said.

Trucy jumped back, a scared look on her face. "I'm sorry, Polly!"

He smiled, pretending like it he was no longer in pain, even though he was. "Maybe save the hugs for after I get the casts off, okay?"

He thought life would never get better. But it did get better. Eventually. Eventually he could bend his knees. Then his arm cast came off and he could use his crutches.

He was actually almost happy. Almost.

Apollo and his crutches walked into his room and took out his journal. He'd been avoiding writing in it. Clay had given in to him a while ago. He said it would help him to process things. But Apollo didn't want to process things. He tried not to think. He just started writing:

 _\- School starts in five days. Junior year. Guess I'll have to go to school on crutches. My first full school year without Clay. In a brand new school.  
\- Sometimes I want to ride my bike down a desert road and just stop and stare at all the stars. No light pollution.  
\- Physical therapy will be coming soon. Doctor says swimming will be very good. Swimming will make me think of Klavier. Shit.  
\- Klavier's leaving in three days. I'm glad. I need a break from him. He's been coming over because he feels bad. I don't know if we'll ever be normal again.  
\- I like staying with Mr. Wright and Trucy. I like them. I'm going to have to walk Trucy to her school.  
\- Walking! I am in love with that thought.  
\- I don't know who I am._

Klavier came over the day before he left for Chicago. But what was strange was that Kristoph showed up too. Mr. Wright and Kristoph spoke like they were old friends. Kristoph didn't shoot daggers at him, but he did note Apollo having healed.

"I see you're doing well, Mr. Justice," Kristoph said.

"Uh, yeah," Apollo said, still a little unsettled with him. Apollo had no idea what Kristoph thought of him now. "I feel a lot better," he said.

"It seems you've taken in quite the individual, Wright," Kristoph said with a polite smile. It was freaking Apollo out, to be honest.

Klavier was standing over with Trucy by the couch and pretending to be amazed (or, knowing Klavier, he actually _was_ amazed) at one of Trucy's magic tricks. It was odd for Apollo - to look at Kristoph standing with his hands behind his back with a poised expression as he spoke to Mr. Wright, and then to look at Klavier as he made a funny face at Trucy and flipped over his card.

Mr. Wright smiled. "That I have. I've got quite the two to keep me straight," he laughed. "And you've got yourself quite the brother. I don't know many people who would jump onto a street to save an injured bird."

Klavier would. Because Klavier was one mystery of the universe.

Kristoph's mouth twitched. "He certainly is quite the character." Kristoph glanced at Apollo briefly. "A very reckless thing for him to do, though, wouldn't you agree?"

Mr. Wright shrugged. "I dunno. I think it was noble. Like I said, not everyone would do that. That means something." Kristoph looked…upset? Apollo wasn't sure. But he didn't look pleased that Mr. Wright had chosen to praise Klavier so much. Mr. Wright smiled at Apollo. "And not everyone would push someone out of the way of a moving car, either."

Apollo huffed. "I already told you-"

" _'I didn't do it on purpose'_ ," Mr. Wright mimicked. "You can't fool me, Apollo."

"I'm not trying to fool anyone," Apollo said. "I'm just telling you the truth."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Wha-Of course I'm sure!" Apollo exclaimed. He could feel himself already getting frustrated. Before he could say anymore, he felt Klavier next to him.

"Can I talk to you for minute?" Klavier said to Apollo. He had this expression like he knew he was saving Apollo from a conversation he didn't want to be a part of.

"Yes. Yes please," Apollo said, glancing once more at Mr. Wright. "We can go outside."

Klavier followed Apollo out to the front porch. Even though there was a bench out on the porch, they decided to sit on top of the steps instead.

Klavier stretched out his arm, the one that had been broken in the accident. Apollo stretched out _his_ arm, the one that had been broken in the accident.

"All better," Klavier said.

They both smiled.

"When something gets broken, it can be fixed," Klavier whispered. "Good as new."

"Maybe not good as new," Apollo said with a shake of his head. Klavier gave him a disproving look. Apollo smiled. "But good anyway."

Klavier's face had healed. In the evening light, he was perfect again.

"I wrote a song today."

"Really?"

"I love music."

"I know," Apollo said.

"I love music," he said again. He was quiet for a little while. And then he said, "I love music- _and you_." Klavier sounded sure. His voice didn't waver or hide or hesitate. He spoke clearly. He was sure. He was sure.

Apollo didn't say anything.

"Music and you. Those are the things that I love the most."

"You shouldn't say that," Apollo said, hardening his voice.

Klavier sighed, like he'd expected this sort of answer. "It's true."

"I didn't say it wasn't true. I just said you shouldn't say it."

He stared at Apollo, who tried to look anywhere _but_ at Klavier's piercing blue eyes. "Why not?"

"Klavier, I-I don't-"

"You don't have to say anything. I know. I know. It's…okay. We're not the same."

"No. We're not the same." Apollo knew what he was saying and he wished to God that Klavier was someone else, someone who didn't have to say things out loud. Apollo just kept nodding. Klavier said something in German but Apollo didn't want to ask what it meant so he just kept his mouth shut.

"So…I'll see you when I get back from Chicago?" Klavier said.

"Yeah."

"You promise?"

Apollo rolled his eyes, thinking Klavier was teasing, but when he looked, Klavier had a serious expression. Apollo looked into his perfect face. "I promise."

He smiled. Apollo didn't know what to say to him, but then he got an idea into his head. "Your notebook is under my bed. Will you get it for me?"

Klavier hesitated. But then he nodded. He disappeared into the house and Apollo waited. When he came back, he handed the book to Apollo.

"I have a confession to make," Apollo said. "I haven't looked at it."

Klavier didn't say anything.

"We can look at it together."

Klavier still didn't speak, so Apollo just opened up the notebook to a random page.

 _And then my soul saw you  
And it kind of went,  
"Oh there you are. I've been looking for you."_

Apollo paused, holding the book towards Klavier. "Who's this about?"

Klavier didn't answer, and to be honest, he didn't have to. Apollo bit the inside of his lip and continued flipping through.

There were songs about his brother. There were unfinished lines. There were pages with a single sentence or a word on them. There were songs about himself and songs about past loves. Songs about law. Songs about everything.

Klavier didn't say a word as Apollo looked at his notebook.

He looked at one that was scribbled out, though he'd left it in regardless. The date on it was from seven years ago. Had Klavier really given him the songwriting book he'd had for that long? Apollo strained to read the words. He could see that it was about his brother.

Apollo looked at Klavier. "What happened seven years ago?"

"My brother left."

"He left?"

"Not physically."

"Oh."

"Ja."

Apollo closed the notebook. Klavier looked so vulnerable. He wasn't cracking jokes. He wasn't calling him 'Herr Forehead.' He didn't have his carefree smile on. His mask was off. Not completely. But almost.

Apollo decided that he didn't like that. And he didn't like what it meant.

"They're honest," Apollo said.

"Honest?"

"Honest and true. You're going to be a great musician someday."

"I already told you I don't-"

"I know. It's a hobby. But you are," Apollo said. "You're going to be both. Someday."

"Someday," Klavier said, though it was clear he thought the idea was ludicrous. "Listen, you don't have to keep the book."

"You gave it to me. It's mine," Apollo said with a smile.

That's all they said. Then they just sat there.

They didn't really say goodbye that night. Not really. Mr. Wright and Trucy came out to say goodbye and Trucy hugged him and gave him some sort of magic thingamabob for him to hold on to. Mr. Wright shook his hand and wished him well. Then it was Apollo's turn.

Klavier hugged him.

Apollo hugged him back.

"See you in a few months," Klavier said.

"Yeah."

"I'll write."

"We have cell phones," Apollo said.

"I know," Klavier said with a smile. "But I'll write too."

And Apollo knew he would. He just wasn't so sure that he would write him back.

Mr. Wright, Trucy, and Apollo sat out on the front porch after Kristoph and Klavier left. It started to rain and they just sat. Sat and watched the rain in silence. Apollo just kept picturing Klavier standing amongst the rain holding a bird with a broken wing. Apollo couldn't tell if he was smiling or not. What if he'd lost his smile when he came back?

Apollo bit the inside of his lip so he wouldn't cry. Was there a word for sucker-punching someone in the heart? There should be, because that's how Apollo felt.

 _"Music and you-those are the things I love the most."_

"I love the rain," Mr. Wright whispered.

 _I love it too. I love it too._

Apollo felt like he was the saddest boy in the world. Summer had come and gone. Summer had come and gone. And the world was ending.

* * *

 **So I'm thinking it'll be around 3-4 chapters of the school year (aka while Klavier is away). I might alternate a chapter from Klav's point of view for this, but I dunno. We'll see how it goes. This next part will probably be a little harder for me to adapt from the book, but I love a good challenge haha. Again, longer space between uploads because IRL stuff is kicking my butt right now haha. But thank you to all you beautiful people to reading! Writing angst-y Klavier was harder than I thought it would be haha. Also I forgot that Apollo journals in the game (at least in the fourth case, I can't remember if it's mentioned in others), so I'm glad that I was able to keep that part in haha.**


	11. Chapter 11

Hello all!

I'm not sure if anyone is still even waiting for more to this story, but I've been re-reading previous chapters trying to get back into it, and I feel motivated again to finish this. Updates will be slower, but I read up to Chapter 10 and realized that even I wanted to know what would happen next, haha, so I am excited to write more about these two dorks.

SO, I've made a personal note to myself to have the next chapter up after Christmas, with new chapters unfortunately only every two or three weeks after that, unless I'm able to squeeze in some more writing time during the week. I've set aside specific time to work on this story, and I've re-read Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (the inspiration from the story and the story from which most of the dialogue is lifted from). Thank you to everyone who has read this story so far. And if anyone new jumps on, thank you so much for reading and I hope you like this story just as much as I love writing it!

New chapter coming soon! :D

Happy holidays! :)


	12. Chapter 12

AN: , so it's going to take me a couple of chapters to get back into the tone and flow of things, so I apologize if it sounds a bit off. Also, these next few chapters might seem a bit rushed. I want to fit the school year arc in 3-5 chapters, and I also want to have at least one from Klavier's perspective. SO, if it seems like I'm cramming a lot in... I probably am, haha. The school year arc won't have Klapollo directly interacting with each other, but I still want to keep it engaging. There will be a lot of teenage angst so that will be fun haha.

I don't have any chapters written out in advance this time, so again, updates will be slower (aiming for every two weeks but hopefully can get a few advance chapters done during this holiday break so that I can do weekly updates - I'm almost done with the next chap as we write this and I have the chapter after that loosely written (I have the scenes and dialogue that I want, just need to add all the fluff to make it flow).

Anywho, enjoy! :)

* * *

"I can't believe you have to wear crutches," Athena said as she plopped down next to Apollo in the cafeteria. Ema followed suit, opening her lunchbox and tossing a few Snackoos into her mouth. "What a sucky way to start the school year."

Just the reminder of it made Apollo's legs ache. He couldn't wait to start walking on his own again. "Yeah," Apollo said. It wasn't so bad. He only had a couple more weeks with the casts on his legs, and then he could walk without the crutches.

He could see Daryan and his group of friends sitting at a nearby table. They were laughing about something that Apollo thought probably wouldn't have been all that funny. He wondered if they missed Klavier.

Klavier had probably started his first day too. Apollo imagined that Klavier was probably sitting at a table very similar to the tables filled with the Daryan's in the world, having easily integrated himself into whatever circle he chose to be a part of.

He wasn't like Apollo. No. They were different.

"What did you even do anyway that's got your legs looked mummified?" Ema said with mild curiosity.

"Mummified," Apollo muttered. "That's new."

She shrugged. "What, did you fall down the stairs or something?" She said sarcastically.

 _I pushed Klavier out of the way of a moving car because Klavier is the type of person to run into the street to save an injured bird_ , Apollo thought to himself.

"It was just an accident," Apollo said earnestly.

An accident. That's all it was. Some days Apollo thought his whole summer was an accident. Like he'd misstepped and then slipped and fell into something he had no intention of falling into in the first place. A kind family. Swimming. Klavier. None of it Apollo could ever have prepared for.

"An accident?" Ema repeated.

"Yep. Just one of those things," Apollo affirmed.

"Well, you should be more careful," Ema said, pointing a Snackoo at him.

"Yeah," Apollo echoed. "I should be more careful."

"Hey, those stairs can be tricky things," Athena offered with a smile, though she still seemed to be studying him a bit. "You know, you should make up a really cool story for how it happened. I mean, people are going to ask you and you don't want to say something boring like falling down the stairs. You have to wow them and beat out all those other kids who have interesting summer stories!" Athena declared.

"Beat them out, huh?" Apollo said warily.

"Yes! Like, say you heroically pushed someone out of the way of a moving vehicle. Now that sounds cool. Much cooler than falling down some stairs," Athena exclaimed with a clap of her hands.

Apollo would've smiled if the painkillers hadn't worn off. He didn't know why he didn't want to tell them. He just didn't. He'd had enough of people telling him how brave he was. He wasn't brave. Apollo knew that for certain. He wasn't brave at all.

He thought back to Klavier and Kristoph walking away in the rain. He'd tried hard not to think of it. He'd tried as much as possible.

"You must have been in some serious pain though," Athena said.

"Yeah," was all Apollo said.

"Are you going to be okay?" She asked genuinely.

"Yes," Apollo said. He wasn't sure he liked this conversation anymore.

"Does it still hurt?"

"No," Apollo said. It was a small lie. The real answer was longer and more complicated.

Athena furrowed her brow slightly at his answer, tapping against her single golden earring as she pursed her lips. If she'd noticed something, she (much to Apollo's thankfulness) chose not to say anything about it.

"The cafeteria seems less annoying without the fop," Ema declared after a few seconds of silence had passed between the three of them.

"I think that's more so because we'd be stuck sitting with Daryan and his…sparkling personality," Athena drawled out, to which Apollo couldn't help but chuckle darkly. "Still, it is weird that Klavier isn't here. I wonder if he's liking it in Chicago."

"Klavier can fit in anywhere," Apollo said.

She looked at him with a knowing smile. "I know he can fit in anywhere. But that doesn't mean he'll like being everywhere and anywhere."

"I like the newfound silence," Ema said with a smile, throwing a couple more Snackoos into her mouth.

Athena grinned. "You totally miss him."

Ema frowned instantly. "You can't be serious."

"Oh—You're the one who brought him up! Apollo, back me up here. I think once Klavier gets back, we should make it our mission to at least get them on a date with each other," Athena declared. "No, wait, first one to set it up wins; let's see who can do it!" She corrected.

"I think… Klavier will probably be different in a year," Apollo said. The thought hit him like a pile of bricks. "It probably won't matter."

Athena pouted. "You're no fun, Apollo," she said, though she still had a faint smile on her face. Apollo didn't need to react, because Ema threw a Snackoo that hit the side of Athena's face and then fell into her lunch tray.

"And you are delusional," Ema said. "Besides, he might not even come back. He's could get into that law academy program they have and decide to stay."

"Hm," Athena said. "That's true. Aside from Klema-" Ema grimaced and pretended to throw another Snackoo at her while Athena laughed. "There isn't really anything that would make Klavier want to come all the way back here, huh?"

Apollo started to look for his painkillers only to see that he'd left them at home.

"That's high school. How many of us will even still talk to each other once we graduate?" Ema said.

"Ema!" Athena said. "Don't be such a grump! Of course we'll all keep in touch. Unless you become an ultra-famous forensic scientist and forget about us little people."

Ema smiled slightly, a more genuine one this time. "Don't rule it out just yet," she said with an easy smile, pointing another Snackoo.

The two of them starting talking about their prospective futures as Apollo picked at his food as his legs started to throb more and more. And to think he still had a few more weeks of that. And then, Apollo hoped, the pain would be gone and he would be healed.

The last class of the day for Apollo was creative writing. He wasn't sure why he'd even taken it, but he found himself sitting in the classroom with 10 other students who were far more creative than Apollo would ever be. He had his journal out in front of him. The teacher had told them to keep a personal journal anyway, so it worked out well for him. Something about it helping the creative juices flow.

Apollo thumbed through it. He studied his handwriting and decided that it was lousy. Nobody could even read it but him, probably, so that was the good news. The teacher gave them the first assignment to write about their summers. As the students chatted about their adventures as they penned their masterpieces, Apollo decided to write something:

 _I learned how to swim this summer. No. That's not true. Someone taught me. Klavier._

Apollo tore out the page.

* * *

The week went by in the same way and routine. But, on the last day of the first week, as he was packing up his things after the final bell, Juniper came up to him. She looked different this time. Though maybe that was because everyone looks different in the summer. She smiled at him shyly, then wordlessly took out a marker and wrote her name on the cast on his left leg. She looked at him. He wanted to look away. But he didn't.

Her eyes were like the night sky in the desert.

It felt like there was a whole world living inside of her. Apollo didn't know anything about that world.

* * *

"Ice cream! You promised ice cream, Daddy!" Trucy said, jumping up in her chair at the kitchen table that Friday evening. "Ice cream for finishing our first week of school!"

"I did say that, didn't I?" Mr. Wright said with a short smile. "Though, I'm not sure more sugar is what you need, Trucy. Did you finish your homework?"

Trucy pouted. "Aw, Daddy. It's the weekend. I have two whole days to do it!" She gleefully turned to Apollo. "Isn't that right, Polly?" She asked.

"I actually already finished mine, so…" Apollo drifted off awkwardly from the couch.

"See that?" Mr. Wright said with a triumphant grin. "It's better to get it done early. Now Apollo doesn't have to worry about anything this weekend."

Trucy pouted, but only for a second. "I'll do it tomorrow, I promise!" She said with a toothy grin. "But you promised we'd make ice cream, Daddy!"

"Make… ice cream?" Apollo said aloud.

Trucy turned to him. "Oh. Daddy and I always make homemade ice cream at the beginning of the school year! I'm his little helper, but I guess now he'll have two little helpers!"

"And by that she means she is the official ice cream tester. That's the extent of her little helping," Mr. Wright said with a laugh.

"It's a tough job, but somebody's gotta do it," she said dramatically.

Sometimes Apollo still wondered how on earth he'd ended up matched with a family who cared so much about each other. They were just genuinely nice people. That seemed like such a foreign concept to Apollo.

"Alright, alright," Mr. Wright conceded. "I suppose you've earned a night to relax. Ice cream today. Homework tomorrow."

"Yay! Is Mr. Edgeworth coming to help again?" Trucy asked, hopping up from her seat and putting her empty dinner plate in the sink, standing on her tiptoes to do so.

"Ah, I don't think so, Trucy. He's got some other things he needs to do tonight," Mr. Wright.

"Aw man, I wanted to show him my new magic trick!" Trucy said. "What's he doing that's more important than that?" She said proudly.

Mr. Wright laughed lightly. "Something about a new Steel Samurai special. I don't know. I've given up trying to understand," he said, placing a hand to his forehead as he shook his head.

Apollo noticed the twinkle in Mr. Wright's eye when he mentioned Edgeworth.

"Apollo, I know moving isn't exactly the easiest, but you're welcome to help. We're in need of an excellent mixer of ingredients," Mr. Wright said lightly.

"I'm not really that great of a cook. All I can make is chicken noodle soup…and a few other basic things…" Apollo said.

"You made that for Klavier!" Trucy announced.

At the mention of his name, Mr. Wright glanced over at Apollo with an unreadable expression.

"He was sick," Apollo said lamely. He slowly pushed himself off of the couch and picked up his crutches, then wobbled over to where they were in the kitchen, leaning himself up against the counter. "What do you need me to do?" Apollo asked, gesturing to the empty mixing bowl.

"You seem sadder," Trucy said. "Since he left."

"I-I'm not sadder," Apollo sputtered out.

"How come you didn't open the letter he sent you?" Trucy persisted.

Apollo grimaced. Yes, he had a letter from Klavier. Received shortly before he'd started school. When he got the letter, Klavier had been gone for a few weeks. True to his word, he'd sent him a letter. He'd texted him a few times too, but Apollo wasn't good at texting back. No. That was a lie. He wasn't good at texting _Klavier_ back. "How did you know I didn't open it?" He asked. "Were you snooping in my room?"

"No!" Trucy said, a little too fast. "I didn't snoop! I was looking for my magic panties, and I saw it on your desk!"

"M-Magic…" Apollo started, then shook his head quickly. "No. A-Actually, I don't want to know."

She gasped. "I haven't shown you my magic panties yet?! I have to go get them! You can fit anything in them!"

"Wh-What?!" Apollo said, nearly falling over.

"Trucy," Mr. Wright said sternly. "Even if you were looking for something, ask before you go into someone's room, alright?" Apollo blinked, in awe that that was what Mr. Wright took issue with.

Trucy pouted. "I know, Daddy. I'm sorry, I've been looking for them everywhere and I can't find them." She turned to Apollo. "I'm sorry, Polly."

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it," Apollo said, waving it off. "So, should we get started? I'm pretty stationary, but I can help." Apollo gestured to his legs.

"They'll be off soon," Mr. Wright said warmly. "Only has to be on for another two weeks, then it'll be good as new."

Before Apollo could respond, Mr. Wright's eyes traveled down to Apollo's casts – namely, the single name on them. "Who's Juniper?" He asked with a small smile.

Apollo looked down at it. Oh, right. "Ah. Just some girl."

"Just some girl, huh?" Mr. Wright said.

"I don't like where you're going with this," Apollo said wearily.

Mr. Wright laughed. "I didn't say anything. I'm glad you're settling in well. Is she nice?"

"It doesn't matter," Apollo said.

"If you say so," Mr. Wright said with a smile.

That night, after they'd made their homemade ice cream and Trucy had pulled them over to the TV to watch the Steel Samuari special (Mr. Wright had commented that he would at least be able to talk to Edgeworth about it in the morning), Apollo went to bed replaying conversations in his head.

Eventually, he fell asleep, and then a bad dream filled his subconscious. Apollo was in a car, driving down the street, which was weird, because Apollo didn't even know how to drive. But he was there, doing something he didn't know how to do. He looked over, and there was Juniper. The girl with the midnight eyes was sitting right next to him. Apollo looked and smiled at her. He didn't see Klavier standing in the middle of the road. He couldn't stop. He was driving and couldn't stop looking at her and didn't see him there as the car barreled forward. When Apollo woke up, he was drenched in sweat.

The next morning, Apollo waddled out onto the porch early in the morning and sat on the bench. It was peaceful outside. Not too warm, just the right breeze. The rest of the neighborhood was quiet except for the sounds of birds chirping.

"You excited to get those casts off?"

Apollo turned to see Mr. Wright walk out onto the porch with a mug of coffee.

Apollo managed a smile. He owed him one, after all their hospitality. "Yeah."

"Then therapy," Mr. Wright said, sitting down next to him.

"So much to look forward to these days," Apollo said snarkily, which made Mr. Wright laugh. Apollo could tell that he wanted to talk to him about something.

"You miss Klavier?" Mr. Wright suddenly asked.

Apollo looked at him. "I don't know."

Mr. Wright raised an eyebrow. "How can you not know?"

Apollo didn't want to admit it, but he did miss Klavier – even though he tried hard not to think about him. The problem with trying hard not to think about something was that you thought about it even more.

"Look, Mr. Wright. It's…I don't know. He's like you and Trucy. He hovers a lot," Apollo said. Mr. Wright didn't say anything, which made Apollo feel bad for mentioning it. "It's just…I'm used to being alone."

Mr. Wright nodded, and it seemed like he was really listening. "You were screaming his name last night."

"Oh," Apollo said. So that's why he'd brought it up. "It…It was just a dream."

"Bad?"

Apollo hesitated. "Yeah."

"You want to talk about it?"

"…Not really." Then Mr. Wright gave him a nudge, like one of those c'mon, I'm your friend kind of nudges. Apollo sighed. "Do you ever have bad dreams, Mr. Wright?"

"Not often," Mr. Wright said. "Sometimes."

"Not like me then."

"We all fight our own private wars."

"Maybe. I hate my dreams." Apollo could feel Mr. Wright listening. "I was driving in a car and it was raining. I didn't see him standing in the road. I couldn't stop. I couldn't."

"Klavier?"

"Yeah." Apollo avoided his gaze.

Mr. Wright didn't say anything for a bit. "I'm sorry about your bad dreams."

"Sorry for waking you."

"You can't help what you dream."

"I know. I didn't mean to run over him."

"You didn't. It was just a dream."

Apollo didn't tell Mr. Wright that he hadn't been paying attention. He'd been looking at a girl when he should have been driving. And that's why he ran over Klavier. Apollo didn't tell him that.

* * *

Sorry for Juniper hehehehehe. I don't actually ship them at all, haha, but her character kind of worked out perfectly for what I wanted to do here.

Thanks for reading! The next one will hopefully be more up to tone. I had to change some stuff from the book to fit this story, so hopefully it worked out in the way that I wanted it to. I hope you all enjoyed it, and thanks again for reading! :)


	13. Chapter 13

_Herr Forehead,_

 _Chicago is cold. But it's not so bad here. The people seem nice enough. I know what you're thinking. That they're nice to me because I'm me. Is that conceited of me to think that that's what you're thinking? Or maybe I just know you that well._

 _The city is almost inspiring. I toured the school's law academy. They were in the middle of a debate about contract law and I thought I'd chime in. The head of the club wasn't too thrilled at me, but I couldn't help it. She pulled me aside and told me that that wasn't becoming of someone who wanted to grace the real courts one day._

 _"Grace the real courts." She said that._

 _Are lawyers always so stiffy? Is that what we have to look forward to? Ach. Someone needs to liven the party._

 _How's the forehead? Still thinking all the time?_

 _Kristoph is… well, I think he likes it here too. He spends all his time in his study but that's not anything new preparing for the next lecture. Sounds tedious. Being a professor is not for me. Too much analysis. Whatever happened to reading things because you liked it?_

 _I think we might stay here. We've only just gotten here, but it's a nice place. To be honest, Herr Forehead, Kristoph was in talks to be a visiting professor in Chicago before the school year ended last May. Back then, I didn't think I'd miss LA. Now I think about it all the time._

 _And I think of you. Should I say that? Probably not._

 _Always,_

 _Klavier_

 _Dear Apollo,_

 _I hope you got my letter. Ach, that's a disingenuous start. Of course you got my letter. I won't analyze why you haven't written back. I won't get on your case about it. If I want to write to you, then I'll write to you. And if you don't want to write to me, you don't have to. That's the way it is. Any anyway, I usually did most of the talking, huh Herr Forehead?_

 _I know that by now your casts are off and your legs have likely fully healed. I know you said that the rule was that we couldn't talk about the accident. I'm sorry to disappoint you, Forehead. That is an incredibly inane rule. No reasonable person could be expected to keep that rule. Although, according to you, I'm not exactly normal, so I suppose that makes me unreasonable, ja? So. I hope therapy went well and that you're normal again. Not that you're normal either._

 _That girl from debate club that I told you about. I ran into her again. Turns out she doesn't hate me. And…she's not so bad. Her name is Akane. She doesn't seem to be impressed with what she calls my "gimmick." I guess she's like you in that way. She doesn't ever seem amused by the things I say when I'm… Nevermind. Anyway, she asked me on a date. She was pretty forward about it, which I liked. She's not as stiffy as I thought._

 _I think I'm going to get a motorcycle._

 _Your friend,_

 _Klavier_

On the way back from the doctor's office, Mr. Wright asked Apollo if he'd written back to Klavier.

"Not yet," Apollo said quietly.

"You should write to him!" Trucy piped up from the backseat. "And tell him I said hi!"

"I will," Apollo grumbled, though both Mr. Wright and Trucy looked at him as though he wouldn't.

When they got home, Apollo went to his room.

Apollo tried to picture Klavier on a motorcycle. It wouldn't have surprised him one bit. He tried to picture Klavier rolling up to his house on his motorcycle, gesturing for Apollo to get on. He would never do it, of course. Apollo didn't have a death wish.

His mind drifted to this Akane person. He wondered about them. Apollo shook his head, trying to think of something else. He jumped on his bed and pulled open his laptop, thinking about the essay on the history of civil rights law that he didn't want to write. Who assigned an essay right before Halloween, anyway?

Apollo started thinking about Klavier and Akane again and then he thought about Juniper. He looked at his casts that were sitting off to the side of his desk. They still had that single signature on it. It was the only reason he hadn't tossed it.

Apollo felt bad for not writing, but he didn't know what to say. He probably wouldn't say anything interesting, anyway.

He laid back on his bed, thinking about Juniper. He thought about what it'd be like to kiss her, the girl with the midnight eyes. Then… Apollo abruptly sat up. No, no, no. No thinking about kissing.

He pulled out his journal and started to write:

 _I think that sometimes I don't let myself know what I'm really thinking about. That doesn't make much sense but it makes sense to me. Clay said once that he thought that the reason we have dreams is that we're thinking about things that we don't know we're thinking about. And those things, well, they sneak out of us in our dreams. Maybe we're like tires with too much air in them. The air has to leak out. That's what dreams are._

 _If dreams don't come from nowhere, then what does it mean that I ran over Klavier in my dream? What does it mean that I had that dream again? Both times I was staring at Juniper when I ran over Klavier. Okay, this is not good._

 _The air is leaking out._

* * *

Apollo placed his lunch-tray at one of the outside benches, swatting away a gnat that was hovering above his food. At the table were Athena and Ema. He'd had lunch with them almost every day. They'd become somewhat good friends. Ema had become slightly less grumpy around him, at least.

"Apollo!" Athena said with a smile. "There you are."

"Here…I am?" Apollo said with a confused expression.

"Now that you're here, I can invite you to the Halloween party I'm having this weekend," Athena said with a smile. "Make sure you wear a costume. Best costume gets a prize."

"She's just going to give it to herself like last year," Ema huffed.

"Hey! The people voted that I had the best one!" Athena disagreed with a grin. "It just so happened to be at my house."

"A party?" Apollo squirmed slightly. "Um, I'm not sure if I'll be able to go."

"Oh, come on! It'll be fun," Athena said. She said something else, but Apollo didn't hear her, because he spotted the girl with the midnight eyes walking by. Juniper glanced at him slightly and then gave him a shy smile as a blush covered her rosy cheeks. He didn't know what to think about her. She continued to walk until she reached a table with Robin and Hugh – Apollo hadn't really spoken to them since that time he'd gone bowling with Klavier, when he'd first met all of them. "Junie will be there," Athena said with a sly smile. Apollo blinked out of his thoughts, only to see Athena looking back and forth between the two of them.

"Huh?" Apollo said lamely.

"You were staring," Ema pointed out. "It doesn't take a scientist to spot that."

"Do you like her?" Athena asked with a grin.

"No," Apollo said immediately. "I mean, I don't know her."

"But you could if you went to my Halloween party!" Athena said. "Junie's awesome. We grew up together. She's a bit shy, but once you get to know her, she's one of the kindest people you'll ever know.

Apollo made some noncommittal gesture in response. "She seems nice," Apollo added. Not that he knew anything about her to make that sort of statement. He'd only seen her and when he hung out with her, he hadn't even spoken to her: how could he know that she seemed nice? Why did he always say things like that? No. Why did people always say things like that?

People were so much more complicated than single adjectives.

"Oh, hey Simon!" Athena waved over Simon Blackquill, who looked like he was on his way to sit by himself. He had a book nestled underneath his arm. Simon had sat with them a few times before, and Apollo tried unsuccessfully to not be intimidated by him.

Simon strolled over to them, and Athena gestured for him to sit down before nearly pulling him by the sleeve. "Are you coming to my Halloween party?"

Simon raised an eyebrow at her. "I have been in attendance each year," Simon said.

"Good! I'm glad," Athena said brightly. "Now… Do you think I should invite Daryan? I've only invited him in the past because Klavier's been with him. But he's kind of a jerk," Athena said with a frown.

"Considering it is one of the bigger parties of the year, he would notice if he weren't invited," Simon answered coolly.

Athena blew air. "Yeah, I guess so. He'd probably show up anyway so I may as well keep things nice." Athena stretched, resting her elbow on Simon's shoulder. "Also, do you have the psych notes?"

"Did you study?" Simon said in a big brother-ish tone.

"I did, just need another pair of notes to look at. You're better at taking notes than I am. I'm a visual learner," Athena pointed out. "Plus, we're on Freud. You know how I feel about Freud." She scrunched up her nose.

Apollo hesitated slightly before looking at Simon. "You study psychology?" Apollo said.

Simon turned his gaze on him, and Apollo couldn't help but feel intimidated at it. "Justice-dono," Simon said. Apollo ignored the fact that he still didn't understand why he called people that. "I do."

"So… do you… do you know anything about dreams?"

Simon perked an eyebrow, but before he could speak up, Athena chimed in. "What kind of dreams are you having?" She asked. "Dream analysis is tough," she added, messing with her earring thoughtfully.

Apollo opened his mouth to say something, but he didn't know how to form the right words. What would they say if he told them? He wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer. "Ah—Nevermind. I think I'm just curious about dreams, that's all.

Athena tilted her head at him, and Simon regarded him curiously as well. "You sure?" Athena said.

Apollo had already stood up and had his tray in his hand. "Mm-hmm," he said. "I forgot I had to go see a teacher during lunch, so I have to go. I'll see you guys later." Apollo didn't wait for a response before he rushed back into the school building.

* * *

He managed to make it through the rest of the week, and then the evening of Athena's Halloween party was upon him. He wasn't sure if he was even going to go. He'd had an excuse ready, expecting to have to take Trucy out trick-or-treating, but he'd unfortunately let it slip that Athena was having a Halloween party, and both he and Trucy practically forced him into agreeing to go to the party. Trucy wasn't at all sad that he wouldn't be there to go trick-or-treating with her. In fact, she'd been the one to suggest finding him the best Halloween costume.

Apollo walked out into the living room and saw Trucy clad in a blue magician's hat and matching magician's attire. She turned around when she heard Apollo, then placed her hands on her hips. "Apollo! You aren't even wearing a costume!"

Apollo looked down at his slightly more professional attire. "Yes I am. I'm a lawyer." He gestured to his tiny attorney's badge that he'd asked Mr. Wright to borrow. He liked the way it felt on him. "Besides, you've worn that at least twenty times in the past two months," Apollo countered.

He didn't think that he was dressed especially well for this party, but he also had no intention of drawing attention to himself by wearing a more noticeable costume.

"Make sure you're back at a reasonable time," Mr. Wright told him, moving from his spot against the kitchen counter. He was wearing a headband with a pair of cat ears – the staple of someone who wanted to throw something on at the last minute for Halloween.

"What's a reasonable time?" Apollo asked.

"You're a lawyer. Figure it out," Mr. Wright said with a grin, gesturing to the attorney's badge.

Apollo fought the urge to make a sarcastic remark. Trucy turned to Mr. Wright. "Daddy, when are leaving? We have to get to Pearl's house!"

"I know, I know. Maya already took the liberty of calling me…three times," Mr. Wright said warily. "I'll tell Miles to meet us there."

"Yay! Mr. Edgeworth is coming?" Trucy exclaimed gleefully. "I'm glad. I hope he wears a costume."

"I… doubt that," Mr. Wright said with a wry chuckle. "Now go grab your shoes and we'll head out."

Trucy nodded and bounded for her room. Once she was out of sight, Apollo shuffled a bit. "Hey, uh, Mr. Wright?" Apollo started.

"Hmm?" He replied.

"You and Mr. Edgeworth…" Apollo said awkwardly, unsure of where he was going with it. "You two seem…close," he said.

Mr. Wright smiled. "Yeah? We've known each other since we were kids."

"Ah," Apollo said.

"Is there a question coming?" Mr. Wright said.

"No—I don't know. I just, I don't know. Forget I said anything," Apollo said.

"Have you written back to Klavier yet?"

"What? N-No," Apollo admitted. "I just haven't had the time," Apollo lied. "Why are we talking about this?" Apollo said harshly.

Mr. Wright just smiled.

Apollo was getting tired of that. Why couldn't Mr. Wright just tell him what he was thinking instead of smiling and letting Apollo sit wondering what it could be.

Apollo was kind of a hypocrite in that sense, he figured. After all, he was in no position to say anything like that.

Once Trucy returned, the three of them left at the same time. Apollo parted ways from them once they got down to the end of the block, and Apollo made his way towards Athena's house, which was much closer than he'd originally thought. It seemed that nearly all of them lived close to each other.

He walked until he saw the house with the most cars crowded around it, and he could faintly hear music playing as he walked towards it. He regretted his decision every step that he took closer. Apollo wasn't good in this situations. And he didn't have anyone to ease him into it. He'd gone out with Clay before, but Clay was always more outgoing than he was. He loved talking to other people.

And Apollo didn't want to cling to Athena the whole evening. He made his way to the door, and when he opened it, he was greeted by the sound of music and his fellow classmates littered around the house chatting to one another. Some were dancing in the middle of the living room, but for the most part, it looked more like one giant hangout session rather than an actual party.

Half the people there were clad in more party attire than actual costumes, while the other half went all-out, and he found himself squeezing past giant marshmallows, bananas, and other fruit-sized costumes.

"Shark-boy, you made it."

Apollo grimaced at the voice that he immediately recognized as Daryan's. He found it ironic that Daryan was the one calling him Shark-boy.

Daryan had gone for the half-way costume, with a half open button-up shirt that revealed a red and blue Superman shirt underneath of it. Apollo was surprised he didn't just wear the same shark hoodie he wore nearly all the time.

"Yep," Apollo said shortly. "I'm here."

"Got anymore neat shark facts for us?" Daryan continued with a short snicker. He folded his arms across his chest.

"I like to learn…" Apollo said. "There's nothing wrong with that."

Daryan started laughing. "Oh man, you are one funny guy. It's a mystery why Klavier kept wanting to hang around you."

"I could say the same about you…" Apollo muttered.

Daryan didn't take too kindly to that. He frowned. "What'd you say to me?"

"Hey Apollo! You made it!" Saved by Athena. She bounded over to him with a large costume. She was a slice of bread with jelly on it, and her face poked out from the top of the costume. Apollo couldn't help but smile – albeit warily.

"Uh. Yeah," Apollo said.

"Where's your costume?" Athena asked.

"I'm wearing it," Apollo said, gesturing to the badge. "I'm a lawyer."

"Pfft. This guy. A lawyer. Must be some kind of joke," Daryan said, muttering to himself as he pushed past them to return to some other friends of his.

"You're welcome," Athena said proudly.

"I…I had it under control," Apollo said.

"I'm sorry, I think you said 'thank you' wrong?" Athena continued with a bright smile. "I'm kidding. But I think 60 seconds with Daryan is enough for anyone."

"Jelly," Apollo started. "Is Simon the peanut butter half?"

Athena turned and craned her head around the room until she pointed into the kitchen and found a very unhappy Simon Blackquill wearing the opposite part of the costume. He didn't look pleased at all, but he'd subjected himself to it for Athena's sake.

She smiled slightly. "He kind of hates me for it, but we're also going to win, so I think it evens out," she said with a short laugh. "I'm glad you're here though. Ema skipped out because she got some shiny new science toy."

"I think that might be the only thing that puts her out of her grumpy mood," Apollo said, and Athena laughed and nodded in agreement.

"Trust me, she's not always a grump," Athena said. She pulled Apollo over to a section low on people so that she could speak clearer. "She didn't get into a program this past summer that would give an intro to forensic science, so she's been bummed about her future for a while."

"Oh… That sucks," Apollo said.

"Yeah. That and her boy toy isn't around for her to tease," Athena said with a short laugh.

"Who? Oh. Klavier," Apollo said. Why did his name sound so hollow to him? "I've been meaning to ask…" Apollo tried to sound as nonchalant as possible. "You're always talking about the two of them. Did-Did something happen between them? In the past?"

"No way," Athena said with a laugh. "I don't know if Ema really likes him, but I don't think she dislikes him as much as she lets on. I think it's more of his…blasé attitude towards things, yet his ability to still do amazing, while the rest of us have to work or – in this case, study – incredibly hard."

"It's not real though," Apollo found himself saying. Athena tilted her head curiously. "The blasé attitude. He thinks a lot. And he cares a lot." He regretted the words as soon as they came out. He thought for sure that Athena would comment on it. "He works hard." Why was he continuing?

Athena just smiled. "I don't doubt that. I think they could be good together. Like fire and ice, almost. A nice balance. But… between you and me, I'm not really sure what Klavier's type even is," she said. "I mean, he's got people fawning over him left and right, and he's been on dates before, but… I don't know. He doesn't ever seem into it." Athena leaned back against the wall. "Maybe he's just waiting for the right person."

Apollo thought about Akane. Maybe she was the right person for him. This faceless girl. "Yeah…Maybe…" Apollo said.

"You sound…sad. You okay?" Athena said.

"What? I don't sound sad. I sound normal."

"You can't fool these ears," Athena said, twirling her earring slightly. She furrowed her brow. "I don't know. We're young. So I guess it doesn't matter if his dates work out or not. When you know, you just know," Athena said, turning her gaze towards the kitchen with a faint smile.

"Do you?" Apollo wondered. He wondered that a lot.

"This is kinda heavy for a Halloween party," Athena said with a laugh. "And you just got here. You should go enjoy yourself!"

"I'm not really a party type of person," Apollo said.

Athena huffed for a moment, then brightened up almost immediately. "I know! Why don't you go out into the backyard?"

"Why?"

"Just go! It'll be nice to get some air."

"I walked to get here, so…"

"Just go, just go!" Athena said, practically shoving him in the direction of the backdoor.

"Ow, okay, okay!" Apollo said, making his way over through the people and to the sliding door. He stopped before opening it when he saw Juniper sitting in the backyard, on a swingset. He didn't even see her face, but he knew it was her. There were a few other people scattered about outside, but Juniper seemed to be in her own world, looking up into the night sky. Fitting. The girl with the midnight eyes looking into the sky that reflected them.

He slowly went outside, then – even more slowly – made his way over to her. He hadn't even spoken to her, but she'd been in his dreams. She'd been the reason that he- No. No need to think about dreams. Dreams weren't real.

"Juniper?" Apollo said.

She looked up, her doe-like eyes widening as she got a faint blush on her cheeks. She stopped swaying slightly on the swing. She was wearing a flower crown on her head and a light pink dress to match. She looked almost ethereal. "O-Oh. Apollo…" She said, averting her gaze. She started fiddling with her fingers.

Somehow her shyness made Apollo seem more confident. "I like your costume. What, what is it?"

"Um…I-I'm supposed to be a fairy, but I…I couldn't get any wings in time," Juniper said quietly.

"Ah. A fairy without wings. Nothing wrong with that," Apollo said kindly. She chose to give him a minute smile in response. "Do you mind if I sit?" Apollo asked. She shook her head subtly, and he took a seat on the swing next to her. "Thanks for signing my cast… You were the only one, I think," Apollo said. Another small lie. He didn't think it. He knew it.

"O-Oh," Juniper said. "It was nothing. I just thought your casts looked so… empty. I figured other people would sign it too…" She drifted off.

"No, no!" Apollo said. This was going horribly. "It's fine. I like that it was just you. I mean, I didn't mind. It was the first time I'd ever broken anything, so at least I had something that made it unique." Something unique indeed.

Juniper simply smiled. He looked at her, and thought of his dreams, and suddenly felt a wave of guilt cross over him. He didn't know why, and he didn't want to know why, so he buried the feeling deep into his heart and filed it away under Things to Examine at a Later Date.

She turned her gaze up towards the sky. "It's such a pretty night," she breathed. "I love the outdoors."

"Yeah. It's really nice," Apollo agreed, looking up at the sky. They must've lucked out that night, because the street lights didn't seem too bright and the sky was so clear so it was lit up with an abundance of stars. Apollo felt so little looking up at it all. "Do you think we'll ever discover all the secrets of the universe?" Apollo found himself whispering.

He hadn't even meant to say it out loud, but he was surprised to hear Juniper's voice answering the question. "Th-That would be a beautiful thing," she said.

"Yeah," Apollo said. "Really beautiful." He looked at her. "Hey, Juniper. Um. I was wondering if you'd maybe want to go to the movies or something…" He said.

Juniper looked at him with wide eyes. She started to sputter something out, then broke out into a coughing fit instead. "Are you okay?" Apollo said quickly.

She raised a hand to gesture that she was, and once her coughing fit had passed, she cleared her throat. "Um. Th-That…That's very nice of you Apollo, but, er, I'm n-not sure that's a good idea," she said, her face going even redder and avoiding Apollo's gaze.

What. "O-Oh," Apollo said. "Right. That's…that's fine."

"A-Are you sure?"

Apollo nodded. "Yeah. It's okay." He said it like nothing.

"Don't you…Don't you want to know why?"

Apollo shook his head. "If you wanted to tell me why, you'd tell me."

She hesitated for a moment. "It's just…I have to focus on my studies, and there's Robin and Hugh, and…" It wasn't long before she drifted off into another coughing fit.

"Hey," Apollo said slowly. "It's okay. Really. I'm fine," he said. And he did feel fine, oddly enough.

"I-I'm sorry," Juniper said. "I…I…Thank you for asking me. I…That means a lot," she added.

Apollo smiled. They sat there for a bit longer, enjoying the silence. And it didn't feel awkward, which Apollo expected would happen.

He wondered if maybe now he'd stop having those dreams. That'd be nice. The more he thought about his dreams, though, the more Apollo thought that maybe Juniper was just a placeholder. That really it could've been any girl in that passenger seat. He didn't like that train of thought, though, so, much like everything else, he chose not to think about it, and instead looked up at the night sky and picked out Orion's Belt among the stars. He wondered who else was looking at that exact same one.

Juniper looked at him with her midnight eyes.

Apollo looked back and decided that maybe her eyes weren't the ones that held all the secrets in the universe.


End file.
